Oakey Al Kite was murdered in 2004 by a man using a false identity. Here’s what happened, and what investigators know today.
Oakey “Al” Kite was a 53-year-old engineering consultant who was murdered inside his Aurora, Colorado, townhouse in May 2004. Investigators believe a man who answered Kite’s advertisement for a basement tenant, using the name “Robert Cooper,” was responsible, but his true identity has never been established publicly.
More than two decades later, the case remains an open homicide investigation. DNA evidence, surveillance footage, the suspect’s fabricated identity and forensic genealogy work have all become important pieces of the investigation.
What You'll Discover:
Who Was Oakey “Al” Kite?
Oakey Albert Kite Jr., known as Al, was born on May 7, 1951, in North Carolina. Colorado Bureau of Investigation records list him as 53 years old when he died and identify Aurora Police Department as the investigating agency.
Kite’s professional life centered on engineering and financial or administrative work connected with major engineering projects. He eventually moved to Aurora, where he enjoyed Colorado’s outdoor lifestyle and owned a townhouse with a basement that could be rented.
That detail would become central to the case.
Kite had advertised the basement as available living space. According to the , the man who answered the advertisement presented himself as Robert Cooper, claimed to be from the East Coast and said he worked for Wells Fargo Bank. Investigators later determined that the identifying information he supplied was false.
The prospective tenant was not simply a witness to the crime; investigators identified him as the primary suspect.
What Happened to Oakey Al Kite?
The established timeline begins in May 2004, when Kite was looking for a new tenant for his basement.
The suspect contacted him and eventually gained access to the townhouse. Aurora Police records say the man used the name Robert Cooper and provided false information on his rental application. The similarly describes the renter as the primary suspect.
On May 22, Kite was killed inside his home.
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation records May 22 as both the incident date and date of death, while Aurora Police records describe the offense as occurring around the evening of May 22.
Police later discovered Kite’s body in the basement on May 24 after his unexplained absence from work prompted concern. His coworkers contacted his family, and a welfare check followed.
The states that Kite had been bound, beaten, tortured and stabbed. His wallet and cell phone were taken from the scene.
The violence was only one part of what made the investigation so difficult.
The “Robert Cooper” Identity
One of the most intriguing aspects of the Oakey Al Kite case is how little investigators ultimately learned about the man who entered Kite’s life.
“Robert Cooper” appears to have been an alias rather than a verifiable identity. The says the man supplied false identification and contact information on his rental application. He also claimed an employment connection with Wells Fargo that investigators could not substantiate.
That meant detectives were not simply looking for a named suspect who had disappeared.
They were looking for a person whose entire backstory may have been constructed to gain access to a victim.
Witness accounts added clues but also uncertainty. The describes the suspect as a white male, approximately 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighing 170–180 pounds, with brown or black hair and brown or hazel eyes. Some witnesses reported a limp and cane, while another reported a possible Romanian accent.
Those inconsistencies matter. Descriptions gathered from different witnesses are not necessarily interchangeable, especially when encounters were brief and stressful.
The Evidence Left Behind
The suspect appears to have taken steps to make identification difficult.
According to the , Kite’s wallet and cellphone disappeared. His cellphone was eventually found in a pay-phone booth, while his pickup truck was recovered near his residence.
There was also a critical surveillance lead.
A man wearing a ski mask was recorded attempting to use Kite’s debit card at an ATM while driving Kite’s pickup truck. That footage provided investigators with another glimpse of the person believed to be responsible.
The combination of a concealed face, stolen property and a fabricated identity created a frustrating investigative problem: there were clues, but few that directly revealed who the suspect actually was.
What the ATM Footage Tells Investigators
The ATM surveillance is valuable because it independently connects the unidentified man to property belonging to Kite after the homicide.
But it has an obvious limitation: a masked face provides little conventional facial-identification value.
This is why the physical description, witness accounts, DNA evidence and other investigative records became so important. No single clue solved the case.
The DNA Breakthrough
Years after the murder, investigators turned to forensic DNA technology for another possible route to identification.
In December 2017, Aurora Police announced that DNA phenotyping had been used to create a Snapshot composite of the person of interest. The analysis predicted characteristics including ancestry, eye color, hair color, skin color, freckling and face shape.
The resulting image represented what the person might have looked like at approximately age 25.
But there is an important distinction between a DNA-generated composite and a conventional photograph.
Aurora Police explicitly warned that the image was a scientific approximation, not an exact portrait. Characteristics such as hairstyle, facial hair, scars and environmental effects cannot simply be reconstructed from DNA in the same way that certain genetically influenced traits can be estimated.
A DNA phenotype is an investigative lead, not photographic identification.
That distinction is easy to lose when discussing cold cases, but it is essential to understanding what the 2017 development actually accomplished.
Forensic Genetic Genealogy and the Modern Investigation
Another important development has been the use of genetic genealogy.
Forensic investigative genetic genealogy is different from simply searching a conventional criminal DNA database. It can involve generating a suitable DNA profile, identifying genetic relationships and using genealogical research to develop investigative leads. The notes that traditional CODIS searches may not produce a useful match, while forensic genetic genealogy can potentially identify much more distant relatives.
Aurora Police’s case record says that, after retired investigator Paul Holes examined the case in connection with The DNA of Murder with Paul Holes in 2019, investigators submitted a blood sample for forensic genetic genealogy testing. The record says the subsequently worked on family-tree development intended to help identify “Robert Cooper.”
This is potentially significant because the suspect’s false identity is precisely the kind of obstacle genetic evidence can sometimes bypass.
Instead of asking, “Who is Robert Cooper?”, investigators can potentially ask a different question:
“Who is genetically connected to the person who left this biological evidence?”
That does not automatically produce a name. It can, however, transform an unidentified-suspect investigation into a family-network investigation.
Oakey Al Kite Case Timeline
What We Know vs. What Remains Uncertain
The Oakey Al Kite investigation is a good example of why cold-case reporting needs careful wording. Some facts are firmly documented; others are investigative theories or details repeated by secondary sources.
| Established information | Still unresolved |
| Kite was 53 when he died. | The suspect’s true name. |
| His body was discovered in his Aurora home. | The suspect’s current location. |
| A man using “Robert Cooper” rented or sought to rent space from him. | The full motive for the killing. |
| Investigators determined the information supplied by the renter was false. | Whether the suspect had committed other crimes. |
| Kite’s property was used after the murder. | Whether every reported witness detail describes the same physical characteristics. |
| DNA evidence has played a role in the investigation. | Whether genetic genealogy will ultimately identify the suspect. |
| The homicide remains unsolved. | Whether a future prosecution will be possible. |
This distinction is especially important with theories sometimes associated with the case, including claims about contract killing, connections to Kite’s professional work or possible links to other crimes. Those theories should not be presented as established facts without supporting evidence.
Why Has the Case Been So Difficult to Solve?
Several problems intersect.
First, the alleged offender appears to have deliberately concealed his identity. Second, the suspect’s face was obscured in important surveillance footage. Third, the crime scene appears to have been manipulated or cleaned, according to investigators.
Then there is the passage of time.
A cold case does not necessarily mean investigators have stopped working. It often means the available evidence has not yet produced an identification that can be proven to the required legal standard.
Modern forensic methods can reopen investigative paths that were unavailable in 2004, but technology is not magic. DNA phenotyping can suggest characteristics, while genetic genealogy can generate relationships; neither automatically establishes a suspect’s guilt.
Is Oakey Al Kite’s Murder Still Unsolved?
Yes.
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation lists the case as a homicide investigated by the Aurora Police Department, and Aurora’s current case record identifies it as open. The continues to list the matter as an unidentified-suspect homicide.
That means “Robert Cooper” should be understood as an alias used by the primary suspect, not as the confirmed identity of the murderer.
There is also no sound basis for declaring that a particular real person is the killer simply because internet discussions have proposed a name or theory.
What Can Finally ?
The most valuable development would be a reliable identification supported by evidence.
That could potentially come from DNA genealogy, a database hit, a witness who recognizes the suspect, documentary evidence establishing his identity, or a combination of investigative leads.
The ‘s ViCAP system exists in part to help law-enforcement agencies identify connections between violent crimes. It maintains a national repository designed to collect and analyze information involving major violent offenses.
For the Kite investigation, even a seemingly small piece of information could matter if it establishes where the unidentified man lived, worked or traveled around May 2004.
The enduring lesson is surprisingly simple: cold cases are often solved by connecting old evidence with information that did not exist, or was not available, when the crime occurred.
FAQs About Oakey Al Kite
Who was Oakey “Al” Kite?
Oakey Albert “Al” Kite Jr. was a 53-year-old man living in Aurora, Colorado, when he was murdered in May 2004. Colorado authorities list him as the victim of an unsolved homicide.
Who is Robert Cooper in the Oakey Al Kite case?
“Robert Cooper” was the name used by a man who answered Kite’s advertisement for a tenant. Investigators determined that the renter provided false identifying information and regard him as the primary suspect. His confirmed identity has not been publicly established.
Was Oakey Al Kite’s killer ever identified?
No. The homicide remains unsolved. Investigators have pursued DNA evidence, DNA phenotyping and forensic genetic genealogy as potential routes to identifying the suspect.
Was DNA found in the Oakey Al Kite investigation?
Yes. Investigators used DNA evidence in developing a forensic phenotype and later pursued genetic-genealogy testing as part of the investigation.
Why is the case still important?
The case illustrates how an offender using a false identity can complicate an investigation, and how advances in forensic genetics may create new avenues in long-running homicide investigations.
Key Takeaways
- Oakey “Al” Kite was 53 when he was murdered in Aurora, Colorado, in May 2004.
- A man using the alias “Robert Cooper” became the primary suspect after answering Kite’s advertisement for a tenant.
- Investigators say the suspect supplied false identification and contact information.
- Kite’s vehicle and financial information were used after the murder, creating important surveillance evidence.
- Aurora Police released a DNA-phenotyping composite in 2017, while cautioning that it was an approximation rather than an exact portrait.
- Forensic genetic genealogy later became another investigative avenue, demonstrating how modern DNA techniques can be applied to older cases.
- As of 2026, Oakey Al Kite’s murder remains unsolved and the case remains open.
Additional Resources
- ViCAP Homicides and Sexual Assaults: A useful overview of the ‘s national violent-crime repository and how investigators can examine patterns across major unsolved cases.
