Weld County deputies are once again turning to the public for help, this time asking anyone with information on Ray Schrecongost's whereabouts to call or email investigators. Schrecongost is wanted by authorities, according to Wednesday's alert, and remains presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, with the charges against him described as merely accusations.
The latest appeal comes from the Weld County Sheriff's Office on Facebook, which posted the alert as part of its recurring Warrant Wednesday campaign. Anyone with information on Schrecongost's location is asked to call (970) 304-6464 or email [email protected], the agency says.
A Trail of Warrants Across Northern Colorado
This is not the first brush with Colorado law enforcement for Schrecongost, who was 30 years old and living in Evans, in Weld County, when Fort Lupton police arrested him in January. That arrest, according to the Fort Lupton Police Department, stemmed from outstanding failure-to-appear warrants out of the Larimer County Sheriff's Office for identity theft and out of the Arvada Police Department for burglary and identity theft. During that same January 15 encounter, officers also contacted him over alleged possession of drug paraphernalia, though local prosecutors ultimately declined to pursue that particular charge.
The spread of jurisdictions involved — Weld County, Larimer County, and Arvada in the Denver metro area — illustrates the kind of multi-county warrant trail that makes tracking wanted individuals so difficult for any single agency. Evans sits just south of Greeley, while Arvada is roughly an hour's drive away in Jefferson County, underscoring how far a person can range while warrants pile up in different courts.
Why Weld County Leans on Social Media
The sheriff's office maintains a persistent backlog of more than 10,000 active criminal arrest warrants at any given moment, according to the Rocky Mountain Voice, a volume that makes public outreach campaigns like Warrant Wednesday an operational necessity rather than a publicity gimmick. Weld County itself spans nearly 4,000 square miles of urban, suburban, and rural terrain across Northern Colorado, creating real geographical hurdles for deputies trying to run down wanted people scattered across the county.
That reliance on crowdsourced tips has not been without missteps. In July, the sheriff's office had to issue a public correction after misstating a charge on a Warrant Wednesday post, a reminder of the verification challenges police face when broadcasting suspect details on social media. Hoodline has previously reported on that correction, and similar Warrant Wednesday appeals have targeted other wanted individuals in recent months, including Joselin Rodriguez-Escobar and Dillon Fisher.
Legal Stakes for Failing to Appear
Colorado law treats skipping court dates as a serious matter in its own right. Under C.R.S. § 18-8-212, a person released on bond who knowingly fails to appear for court proceedings in a felony case with intent to avoid prosecution commits a separate Class 6 felony for violating bail bond conditions, according to Denver's Defense Attorney. Failure-to-appear warrants like the ones tied to Schrecongost's earlier arrest automatically trigger arrest orders that surface across state databases, adding another layer of exposure on top of whatever underlying charges a person already faces.
For those hoping to resolve outstanding warrants without waiting to be picked up, Weld County offers voluntary options. Individuals can surrender at the Weld County Combined Courts Clerk's Office in Greeley during weekday business hours, or turn themselves in at the Weld County Jail at 2110 O Street, which accepts surrenders 24 hours a day. The 19th Judicial District Court, the Public Defender, and the District Attorney's Office also periodically host Warrant Clearance Day events, according to the Colorado Judicial Branch, allowing people with eligible non-violent misdemeanor or low-level felony warrants to resolve their cases without immediate incarceration.
As with every Warrant Wednesday post, the sheriff's office is directing tips straight to its crime-tip line rather than public comment threads. Anyone with information on Ray Schrecongost is urged to contact investigators directly rather than post identifying details online.
