On November 15, 2021, in Centennial, Colorado, 57-year-old Gaywin Wade Westfall killed his 46-year-old wife, Trisha Sue Westfall, in a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck before committing suicide by gunshot. The incident occurred following a high-speed vehicle crash into unoccupied parked vehicles shortly after Gaywin picked up Trisha from her workplace at the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Prior to the incident, Gaywin suspected Trisha of having an emotional affair with a co-worker. Days earlier, on November 7, 2021, Gaywin removed three internal security cameras from their home. On the day of the shooting, Gaywin dropped off Trisha at work, completed a financial transfer, and texted his daughter warning her not to be at the family residence after 4:00 p.m. Following the fatal shooting, a prepaid burner phone procured by Gaywin was used by a female relative to text Trisha's co-workers disclosing the affair.
Country: United States
State/Province: Colorado, United States
City/Region: Centennial
Incident Type: Murder-Suicide
Relationship Status: Married
Relationship Duration: 12 years
Incident Date: Nov. 15, 2021
Relationship Origins:
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How the relationship or connection began.
12 years
Important relationship phases recorded for this case.
Reported red flags or early concern points.
Contributing factors and possible motives from the available sources.
2021-11-15
Recorded relationship or case outcome.
English labels are shown first. Original-language titles are preserved for source verification.
Dr. Grande · Original language: English
Betrayed Husband Removes Cameras Before Mysterious High-Speed Collision | Tricia Westfall Analysis
Jealousy
The relationship exhibited signs of intense control and possessiveness originating early in the romance, which escalated into extreme paranoia regarding spousal fidelity. Upon confirming suspicions of an emotional extra-marital affair, the offender engaged in calculated pre-crime preparations, including removing surveillance equipment and acquiring a burner phone. The failure to maintain control over the spouse culminated in a fatal murder-suicide and post-mortem attempts to justify the violence to third parties.
Police initially considered external shooting or road rage possibilities given the high-speed collision on East Gettis Avenue. Physical evidence inside the Chevrolet Silverado—including a pistol near the victim, a bullet hole passing from inside the passenger door outward, a bullet hole through a deployed airbag, and 99% accelerator pressure without braking—confirmed an internal murder-suicide sequence. Investigators traced a post-incident burner phone text sent to DMV staff back to a female relative instructed by Gaywin.
Initial confusion existed regarding whether gunshots were fired from outside the pickup truck during a road rage event or from within the vehicle. Physical ballistics, airbag damage, and vehicle telemetry rapidly clarified that the gunfire originated internally after the collision.
Gaywin picked up Trisha from her DMV workplace at 3:30 p.m. on November 15, 2021. Within six minutes, he accelerated his truck to 99% throttle with no braking, crashing intentionally into parked vehicles on East Gettis Avenue. After airbag deployment, Gaywin fired two shots at Trisha, striking her face and arm, before turning the handgun on himself. A pre-arranged text message revealing Trisha's affair was sent from a prepaid phone to her colleagues later that evening.
The presence of coercive control, escalating spousal jealousy, access to firearms, calculated pre-planning (such as removing home security cameras and arranging post-offense messaging), and a lethal drive to enforce compliance posed catastrophic risk factors that culminated in severe intimate partner homicide and suicide.
Heightened possessiveness, attempts to isolate a partner from employment, and pre-meditated tampering with home security equipment represent critical indicators of lethal violence risk in domestic relationships involving suspected infidelity.
Gaywin's persistent advances while Trisha was married, his ongoing controlling behavior, his pressure for her to resign from her job, and his removal of three interior security cameras on November 7 served as significant warning signals.
Physical evidence in the truck including airbag bullet holes, internal door entry holes, accelerator telemetry data, and the timing of the pre-planned burner phone text message provided crucial investigative clues.
The handgun recovered near the passenger seat, ballistic entry holes in the airbag and door, vehicle black box data showing 99% acceleration without braking, and cell phone records tracing the burner phone instructions constituted the primary physical evidence.
DMV co-workers reported hearing Trisha's final phone conversation with Gaywin around 3:30 p.m. where she agreed to meet him outside. Multiple 911 callers reported the high-speed pickup truck collision at 3:36 p.m.
Initial hypotheses of external road rage or drive-by shooting were disproven once police inspected internal vehicle ballistics, airbag damage, and cell phone communications.
The precise location and method Gaywin originally intended to use when removing home security cameras on November 7, as well as the exact immediate trigger during the six-minute vehicle ride, remain unconfirmed.