Mom weds younger man, disappears


Family says woman is ill
By Ann Schrader, Denver Post Staff Writer
GOLDEN - Andy Labout's mother, Patsy Mae Labout, has been missing since May 12 after the 68-year-old Pleasant View woman abruptly wed a boarder more than 30 years her junior.

Labout and his three siblings are worried about their mom, who suffers from dementia, short-term memory loss and pre-diabetes.

"This is very painful for my family," Labout said at a news conference Wednesday at the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office. "I just want my mom back. The whole family wants her home safe."

On the night of May 9, the Labout family learned that Patsy Labout "suddenly and unexpectedly" married Sean Degaray, said sheriff's Investigator Kate Battan.

Degaray, 36, had rented a room for seven years in Patsy Labout's home in Jefferson County. The two were not romantically linked before the marriage, Battan said.

Degaray, who was unemployed, purchased a quit-claim deed form from a Golden drugstore. Within an hour and a half after the courthouse marriage, Patsy Labout signed over the house she had owned since the late 1950s to Degaray, according to a copy of the quit claim.

On May 12, the family got a restraining order against Degaray. When the order was served, he angrily left Labout's home, Battan said.

Labout, who "may be unable to care for herself adequately," also became angry and left, Battan said. The family has not seen her since and filed a missing-person report May 14.

Labout's credit cards were last used May 12, at a Lakewood restaurant and at a Vitamin Cottage.

Degaray was last seen May 15, alone at Labout's home, as he tried to get his belongings but found he could do so only through an attorney because of the court order.

His dogs - Labrador-chow mixes named Night, Zeke and Hope - to whom Andy Labout said Degaray was "violently protective," were not there. Labout said he believes his mother may have been tending the dogs.

"He was not a happy camper," Labout said of Degaray. "He claimed he had not seen her."

Labout said he does not believe his mother and Degaray have left the area, adding that his mother grew up here and is attached to her property. Degaray "is very street smart," Labout said, "and probably will hide for a long time."

Every night, the Labout family has looked for their mother, searching campgrounds, WalMarts and other locations.

Degaray has no criminal history but has had "a lot of problems over the years," Labout said without elaborating.

Degaray, when he learned of the family's restraining order, was "very angry and very threatening," Labout said.

Sheriff's officials said foul play has not been ruled out.

Patsy Labout is 5-foot-1, 102 pounds, with long gray hair. Her car is a maroon 1988 Toyota Tercel hatchback, license No. GTZ 201.

Degaray is 5-foot-11, 210 pounds, although Labout believes he may weigh as much as 250 pounds now. He is bald and usually wears a baseball cap. His car is a gray 1984 Ford LTD, license No. 757 AER.

Anyone who sees either of them is asked to call Battan at 303-2715619.