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A 36-year-old man is in custody on suspicion of killing a Colorado dog breeder who was reported missing last month and then found dead on land near his home, the Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Office announced Friday.

Sergio Ferrer is suspected of first-degree murder, felony murder and aggravated robbery in the death of 57-year-old Paul Peavey, who ran a business, Elite European Dobermans, on a 110-acre Rocky Mountain property. The business’s website touts Peavey’s decades-long love of dogs and the quality of his litters.

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Peavey’s body was found on Aug. 24 by an organized search party, according to the sheriff’s news release. The Clear Creek County Coroner’s Office said he had a gunshot wound and determined his death to be a homicide.

A spokesperson for Colorado state courts told HuffPost in an email that the district attorney has until Sept. 9 to file formal charges against Ferrer. He remains in jail, and HuffPost could not immediately identify an attorney representing him.

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Peavey was reported missing from his property on Aug. 21, according to an arrest warrant obtained by HuffPost. Deputies who went his home found his dogs had been left without food or water. The animals were taken to a shelter.

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Two days later, a group of people conducting a search for Peavey found his body down a hill about 30 yards from his trailer, according to the warrant. The body had been covered in branches and rocks.

The man who found the body told deputies that he had called Peavey’s cellphone after his disappearance, and it was answered by someone who seemed to be using a fake accent, the warrant said. The man said he believed it was Ferrer on the phone, and he told deputies that Ferrer’s daughter had been selling Doberman pinscher puppies on Facebook, the warrant said.

The man told deputies he believed several puppies were missing from the property, as well as cash, metal-detecting equipment and jewelry. Deputies confirmed in an earlier news release that many puppies are unaccounted for, possibly as many as 10 that were microchipped at a local veterinary service.

Ferrer was arrested at his workplace later that day on a separate outstanding warrant related to a weapons charge in Hamilton County, Nebraska.

According to the warrant detailing probable cause for murder and robbery, which was filed on Aug. 30, investigators interviewed a person who said they’d seen Ferrer holding a small Doberman on Aug. 23 while multiple dog crates were in his car.

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Authorities searched Ferrer’s home, where they said they seized items including jewelry and a cellphone that belonged to Peavey. Clothes believed to have bloodstains were also reportedly found inside the home, according to the warrant.

In an interview with deputies on Aug. 26, Ferrer allegedly said he purchased the Doberman from Peavey two weeks before, but he later told detectives he went to Peavey’s home on Aug.19 and took guns, some dog registration papers, metal detectors and a box of jewelry. However, Ferrer denied taking any puppies or harming Peavey, according to the warrant.

“I saw an opportunity to take some stuff and put money in my pocket. But I didn’t do nothing to Paul,” Ferrer allegedly told detectives, claiming that the home was in filthy condition.

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Ferrer claimed that he returned to Peavey’s home the following day to apologize and return the items but that Peavey was missing, according to the warrant. Throughout his questioning, Ferrer denied killing Peavey or stealing dogs.

But deputies said they had been told by a veterinary clinic that Peavey had implanted 10 of his Doberman puppies with microchips and that one of them came into the clinic with a new owner, according to the warrant. The owner told investigators she had purchased the puppy for $775 from Ferrer, the warrant said. A second puppy was found to have been given to a local bartender by Peavey, according to reports by CBS News.

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In an interview on Aug. 29, Ferrer told detectives that the case was “a lot bigger than what you think,” claiming Peavey was part of a drug cartel and the property was a stash house, according to the warrant. He reportedly told them that when he had gone to Peavey’s property to make a final payment for the dog he bought, Peavey had fired a gun at him over a dispute about missing drugs and then Ferrer shot him in self-defense.

According to the warrant, Ferrer admitted to placing Peavey’s body where someone might find him but covered it up out of respect.

Clear Creek authorities said Friday that the investigation is ongoing and that most of the Doberman puppies are still unaccounted for. They are urging the public to contact them if they have information on the missing dogs.

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