Zachary Kwak: 1 among the 3 rock-throwing 'blood brothers' who killed Alexa Bartell pleads guilty
Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers' discretion advised.
JEFFERSON COUNTY, COLORADO: Zachary Kwak, 19, one of the three teenagers charged with first-degree murder in connection with a series of deadly rock attacks, has pleaded guilty to three counts.
The attacks, which occurred in April 2023, claimed the life of 20-year-old Alexa Bartell and left several others injured.
Zachary Kwak's plea deal leads to suspension of first-degree murder charges
On May 9, 2024, Kwak appeared in Jefferson County District Court and pleaded guilty to first-degree assault, second-degree assault, and attempted second-degree assault.
As part of a plea agreement, his original charges, including murder, were dropped, and thirteen counts were dismissed. Kwak’s bond was also revoked, according to 9 News.
The plea agreement stipulates that Kwak now faces between 20 and 32 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections. Another condition of the deal forbids Kwak from being sentenced as a youthful offender.
The First Judicial District Attorney’s Office stated that Kwak agreed that he “acted knowingly, under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life, by engaging in conduct which created a grave risk of death,” as per CBC.
Zachary Kwak has to cooperate with prosecutions of co-defendants
Kwak, along with Joseph Koenig and Nicholas 'Mitch' Karol-Chik, were each charged with first-degree murder for the death of Alexa Bartell and multiple counts of attempted murder.
Under the terms of his deal, Kwak is required to cooperate with the prosecutions of Koenig and Karol-Chik. He will be sentenced following the conclusion of the cases against the other two defendants.
The attempted murder charges are related to other incidents that occurred the same night Bartell was killed with authorities describing it as “large landscaping rocks.” Six other drivers, whose cars were hit the night Bartell died, survived.
They will be tried separately with Karol-Chik’s trial scheduled for June 7, 10-14, 18, 20-21, and Koenig’s trial scheduled for July 19, 22-26, 30 through August 1.
Sentencing for Kwak has been delayed until the resolution of the other two cases involving Karol-Chik and Koenig are decided. That is likely to happen in September.
The night on which Alexa Bartell was killed
Bartell was killed as she drove on Indiana Street near Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge on April 19, 2023. At the time, she was on the phone with a friend, Jenna Griggs, and the line went silent.
Griggs used the Find My iPhone feature to find Bartell’s car with her friend inside, who had “sustained a significant injury to her head and was not moving,” according to the affidavit cited by CBS News.
Investigators later found “biological matter” throughout the car and a large “‘river rock’ landscaping rock” on the side of the road, stained with blood.
The ‘blood brothers’ pact
The now-convicted trio at the time returned to the accident scene and took a photo of the carnage then pledged a “blood brothers” oath to keep quiet about the crime, per NBC News.
Kwak reportedly said that the impact on Bartell’s car sounded like a “rail gun” and that he snapped a picture of the devastation because “he thought Joseph or Mitch would want it as a memento,” the publication reported citing an affidavit.
Kwak also told detectives “Joseph and Mitch were talking about them now being ‘blood brothers’ and they could never speak of this incident,” the report mentioned.
