An Ada County grand jury indicted Adam Michael Dees on three counts of first-degree murder Wednesday in connection with the deaths of Ted, Elaine, and Thomas Welp in March.
The grand jury also charged Dees with felony counts of robbery and use of a firearm or deadly weapon in the commission of a crime.
Dees, who was already charged with felony counts of grand theft and forgery in connection with items being taken from the Welp’s home, is being held in the Ada County Jail with no bond.
Ada County Sheriff Gary Raney and Prosecutor Jan Bennetts told a group of reporters Wednesday the grand jury was able to make those indictments thanks to the tireless work of detectives and other investigators since the Welps were found dead inside their Foothills home in early March.
A major part of that investigative work would not have been possible without the help of the public, Raney said.
“Right after this case broke, I asked people to call in with leads … We got those leads, thanks to people who gave us that observation, who went out of their way to go dig something up that they might have thought was suspicious.
Those things will ultimately be presented at trial. But what is unique about this is it wasn’t just the people directly involved or directly impacted (by the murders). It was people who could have just as easily turned the other way, gone about their business and not taken the extra time. But they took the extra time, and because of that, we have a good case.”
Raney said Wednesday that ACSO detectives will continue to work to bring justice to the Welp family.
“Over the past four weeks, (detectives) have spent well over 1,000 hours following up leads, processing the crime scene, and gathering every piece of evidence (they) could gather.
I am very proud of the work that they have done … it’s taken time away from their families and personal lives, but they are here to bring justice for this case and they’ve done an exceptional job of doing that.”
The grand jury determined Dees used a baseball bat and gun to kill all three members of the Welp family inside their Cartwright Road home sometime between March 8 and 9. The grand jury also determined Dees used force to rob the Welps — stealing credit cards and jewelry — and then committed the crimes of grand theft and forgery by using the Welp’s credit cards at stores.
An arraignment hearing for Dees will be set sometime during the next several weeks in front of a 4th District Judge. Dees will be able to enter a plea during that hearing. If he pleads not guilty, a jury trial will be scheduled.
Both Raney and Bennetts thanked the Welp family for their trust and support over the last month.
“In such a time of tragedy, (the Welp family) had nothing but grace and class throughout this process,” Sheriff Raney said. “They have been so great. We hope that this process, as we hand this investigation over to the Ada County prosecutors office, for the furtherance of justice, brings them the day they deserve.”