How, when and where Darrell “Pete” Petry died while investigators searched his remote property for evidence of missing woman Vanessa “Nessy” Orren went unanswered for weeks.
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SUBLETTE COUNTY – How, when and where Darrell “Pete” Petry died while investigators searched his remote property for evidence of missing woman Vanessa “Nessy” Orren went unanswered for weeks.
Although Petry was not named as a suspect in Orren’s disappearance, the few details released about his untimely death led to numerous rumors and questions.
Sublette County Coroner Curt Covill confirmed details about Petry’ death this week – the first shared since Sublette County investigators searched Petry’s property near LaBarge from June 19-23.
SCSO’s Sgt. Travis Bingham has declined to provide information about the man except to say Petry’s death was “self-inflicted” with no signs of foul play, citing the active investigation.
Covill was called when Petry’s body was found on June 22 and he determined Petry died on June 20 – the day he left his home. He was not in custody or detained during the search, Bingham said earlier.
It isn’t known if anyone spoke with Petry or was at his home when he left.
Deputies apparently lost track of him for several days; on June 22 they read a note left on his door and looked for him at Deadline Ridge, just inside the Sublette County border with Lincoln County.
Petry did not shoot himself, no gun was found at the scene and his toxicology reports came back negative, Covill said.
Petry was found outside, seated against a tree with a cord tied to him and the tree; when he sat down, he asphyxiated, the coroner said. Petry’s dog was in Petry’s Jeep Cherokee parked nearby.
“There was nothing to indicate foul play,” Covill said of the scene and his later exam, determining it was “suicide by ligature, strangulation.”
Petry’s body was taken to Covill Funeral Home, where a visual postmortem exam showed “no other trauma” such as fresh injuries or abrasions. Covill saw “nothing suspicious” to indicate an autopsy was needed and contacted Petry’s son Ira, who identified his father from photos.
Petry’s remains were later cremated and the ashes sent to his family. Covill filed a death certificate with the state of Wyoming; his coroner’s report is not finalized while he waits for detectives to conclude their report.
“The other investigation (into Orren’s disappearance) is completely out of my realm,” Covill said.
