On October 13, 2021, 33-year-old U.S. Postal Service mail carrier Jason Leon Schaefer was shot three times and killed while delivering mail on his route on Heather Hill Street in Longmont, Colorado. The shooting occurred two days after Schaefer filed court documents seeking increased custody of the son he shared with his ex-partner, 26-year-old Devon Rebecca Shriner. Investigators discovered that Shriner and her boyfriend, 27-year-old prison guard Andrew James Richie, orchestrated a plan to murder Schaefer. Richie tracked Schaefer's location along his route using a prison-associated ride-share vehicle while relaying information to Shriner, who staged her postal scanner and phone at Richie's house to establish an alibi before driving her black Nissan Rogue to Longmont and shooting Schaefer. Both Shriner and Richie were arrested, charged, and convicted of first-degree murder in 2023, receiving life sentences without parole.
Country: United States
State/Province: Colorado, United States
City/Region: Longmont
Incident Type: Domestic Violence Homicide
Relationship Status: Ex-partners
Relationship Duration: Approximately 6 years
Incident Date: Oct. 13, 2021
Relationship Origins:
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How the relationship or connection began.
Approximately 6 years
Important relationship phases recorded for this case.
Reported red flags or early concern points.
Contributing factors and possible motives from the available sources.
2021-10-13
Recorded relationship or case outcome.
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Dr. Grande · Original language: English
Postal Worker Gunned Down After Former Lover Becomes Afraid of Work | Jason Schaefer Case Analysis
Custody Conflict
The case illustrates a severe post-separation escalation pattern driven by child custody disputes, romantic jealousy, and co-offender dynamics. After separating and entering new romantic relationships—including the victim dating the offender's sister—tensions mounted over financial issues and child co-parenting. The filing of official custody papers acted as an immediate trigger, prompting the offender and her infatuated new partner to plan and execute a premeditated targeted homicide.
Police rapidly dismantled the perpetrators' staged alibis using electronic and vehicular evidence. GPS tracking showed Shriner's postal scanner remained stationary at Richie's house during the murder, while cell phone location data showed Richie's phone following Schaefer's route. Surveillance video identified Shriner's black Nissan Rogue with a missing front-passenger hubcap near the scene, alongside a ride-share vehicle managed by Richie's prison employer. Text messages revealing prior murder discussions were recovered from Richie's phone. Shriner was convicted of first-degree murder on March 7, 2023, and Richie was convicted on September 27, 2023. Both received life sentences without parole.
Initial investigative complexity arose from staged alibi evidence, specifically Shriner's postal scanner and mobile phone left at Richie's residence in Loveland to simulate her presence on duty. Additionally, Richie provided conflicting narratives during police interviews, initially denying a romantic relationship with Shriner and later falsely claiming he followed Schaefer only to warn him of a murder plot.
Investigative analysis reconstructed that on the morning of October 13, 2021, Richie drove Schaefer's route in Longmont while communicating with Shriner via phone for nearly three hours. Shriner left her postal scanner, cell phone, and postal vehicle at Richie's house, drove her personal Nissan Rogue to Longmont, approached Schaefer at a bank of mailboxes on Heather Hill Street, and shot him three times. Richie visited a restaurant to establish his own alibi before Shriner returned to Loveland to resume her postal route.
High risk was indicated by a history of acrimonious workplace conflict leading to job termination, explicit written threats regarding murder, persistent post-separation resentment fueled by overlapping romantic connections, and an escalating legal fight over child custody.
Digital forensics, including GPS scanner logs, cell tower data, and stored text messages, were decisive in disproving fabricated physical alibis. Chronic high-conflict parenting disputes combined with new romantic attachments and obsession present significant violence risks requiring proactive legal and safety interventions.
Explicit hostility from Shriner regarding Schaefer's existence, text messages discussing homicide and digging graves, workplace conflicts resulting in employment termination, and intense animosity over Schaefer dating Shriner's sister.
A missing front-passenger hubcap on a black Nissan Rogue seen near the murder scene matched Shriner's personal vehicle. Cell tower data placed Richie's phone following Schaefer's exact mail delivery route.
GPS tracking from Shriner's postal scanner, cell phone location logs, surveillance video capturing the suspect vehicle and shooter in hoodie and mask, stored photos on Richie's phone of the hooded attire taken two days prior, and text messages detailing premeditated murder plans.
Bystanders on Heather Hill Street reported hearing multiple gunshots and observing a mail carrier down next to his postal truck. Video surveillance captured a hooded, masked individual approaching Schaefer's vehicle, firing shots, and running back toward Renaissance Drive.
Initial alibis claiming Shriner was eating lunch with Richie during her work shift in Loveland were disproven when forensic analysis revealed her phone and scanner were detached from her actual movement.
No major unresolved factual questions remain regarding the perpetrators, as both Devon Shriner and Andrew Richie were convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without parole.