Police say the accused man tried to delay discovery of Lauren Jensen-Green’s body after killing her.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Blood on the bedding, floor and walls led officers to the body of 65-year-old Lauren Jensen-Green, whose death inside a South Nevada Avenue motel room has resulted in a first-degree murder charge against Timothy O’Brien.

The physical condition of the room and statements attributed to O’Brien form the center of the case as prosecutors prepare for a preliminary hearing scheduled for July 13. Investigators say O’Brien, 60, admitted striking Jensen-Green with a hammer, smothering her with a pillow and hiding her body beside the bed. The allegations have not been tested at trial, and O’Brien is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

Colorado Springs police entered the motel room at about 11:35 a.m. May 20 after receiving an urgent request to check the property in the 1700 block of South Nevada Avenue. Officers reported seeing apparent bloodstains on several surfaces. Jensen-Green’s body was wedged into a narrow space between a bed and a nightstand, according to arrest records described by local news organizations. She was unclothed from the waist down. Police initially called the death suspicious, but the circumstances prompted the department’s homicide unit to take control of the investigation. “Upon arrival officers located a deceased female inside a motel room,” the Police Department said in its initial account. Authorities have not publicly released a full autopsy report, a complete inventory of evidence or the motel’s name. The El Paso County Coroner’s Office later confirmed Jensen-Green’s identity, and police classified her death as the city’s sixth homicide of 2026.

Investigators also found wet rags with apparent blood on them in the bathroom, evidence they believe may show that someone tried to clean the room after the killing. Records do not say whether laboratory testing has confirmed that the material was Jensen-Green’s blood. Police have not disclosed whether they recovered the hammer or pillow that O’Brien allegedly described. They also have not said whether fingerprints, surveillance video, electronic records or DNA evidence independently connect him to the attack. Those questions may become important as prosecutors present evidence in court. The room itself nevertheless gave detectives an immediate account of violence and concealment. Blood remained visible despite the possible cleanup, and the position of Jensen-Green’s body suggested an effort to keep it out of sight. Investigators say O’Brien later supplied an explanation for that placement. “I didn’t want her discovered until it was time for checkout on the second day,” he allegedly told a homicide detective. “I figured it gave me time to get away.”

Records show that Jensen-Green and O’Brien checked into the motel two days before officers found her. O’Brien reportedly told police they had met on a bus and that he helped her reach the motel. He said they used methamphetamine during their stay. According to his account, Jensen-Green began yelling while he was trying to rest. He described her as “ranting and raving” and said he became angry. “I was actually just trying to lay there and enjoy my high,” O’Brien allegedly told the detective. Police say he stated that he “snapped,” removed a hammer from his backpack and walked toward Jensen-Green while she was lying down. He allegedly struck her in the head several times. Investigators say O’Brien then placed a pillow over her face to “finish it.” Authorities have presented those statements as admissions, but no judge or jury has determined whether they were voluntary, accurate or supported by all of the physical evidence.

The morning after the alleged attack, O’Brien remained at the motel long enough to interact with housekeeping, according to the arrest documents. He allegedly told a worker not to enter because Jensen-Green was sleeping. That statement, investigators contend, helped delay discovery of the body and gave him additional time to leave. Police have not identified the housekeeper or said whether the worker noticed blood, unusual sounds or damage. It also remains unclear exactly when Jensen-Green died, when O’Brien left the motel and how much time passed before another person alerted authorities. Motel registration information, payment records, key-card data and security recordings could help establish those details, but officials have not publicly described such evidence. Prosecutors may use the alleged warning to housekeeping to argue that O’Brien understood what had happened and took deliberate steps afterward. Defense lawyers could question the reliability of witness memories and whether the documents accurately capture the full exchange.

The investigation did not begin with a motel employee finding Jensen-Green. Police were directed toward O’Brien after a roommate reported hearing him discuss the death, according to the arrest records. The roommate told investigators that O’Brien admitted killing a woman but offered a different explanation from the one he later gave detectives. In that version, O’Brien allegedly claimed Jensen-Green had approached him with a knife and that he killed her in response. Authorities have not reported finding a knife or publicly described evidence of an armed confrontation. The difference between the two accounts could become a major issue in court. One suggests a reaction to an immediate threat, while the other describes an attack that began because O’Brien was annoyed by Jensen-Green’s yelling. Police have not named the roommate, explained the roommate’s relationship with O’Brien or disclosed whether the conversation was recorded. The roommate’s report, however, appears to have supplied a crucial link between O’Brien and the room where Jensen-Green was found.

Officers arrested O’Brien on May 25, five days after the body was discovered. Patrol officers spotted a man matching his description at a Maverik gas station in Colorado Springs. The man initially identified himself as “Mark,” according to the records. Officers checked law enforcement databases, determined that he was O’Brien and took him into custody on an unrelated warrant. Police said he had bandages on his hands and fingertips. O’Brien reportedly explained that he had fallen down an incline and scraped his fingers. Authorities have not said whether medical testing connected those injuries to the motel room. During a later hospital visit for DNA collection, O’Brien allegedly mentioned the homicide before investigators asked him directly about it. Police say he questioned why they needed evidence associated with a possible sexual assault and insisted there had been no sexual contact. His statements included an alleged distinction between “something I did” and conduct he said had not happened. Investigators treated the remarks as further evidence of his knowledge of the killing.

Prosecutors charged O’Brien with first-degree murder, an accusation that requires the state to prove the elements of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt before a conviction can occur. The preliminary hearing set for July 13 serves a narrower purpose. A judge is expected to decide whether prosecutors have shown probable cause to continue the case. The hearing is not a trial, and the state does not need to prove guilt at that stage. Prosecutors may call detectives or present testimony summarizing the room evidence, witness accounts and O’Brien’s alleged statements. The defense may challenge whether the evidence supports the specific charge and may question officers about gaps in the timeline. A judge could allow the case to proceed, reduce or modify charges, or address other procedural issues. Court records also show that O’Brien faces kidnapping and aggravated robbery allegations in a separate case. Those accusations are distinct from Jensen-Green’s death and have not resulted in convictions.

O’Brien was being held in the El Paso County jail with bond listed at $50,000 in reports published after his first court appearance. The current terms of his detention could be reviewed as the case proceeds. Publicly available records cited by local news organizations show that he pleaded guilty to arson in Denver in 1992, but authorities have not suggested that the older case is connected to Jensen-Green’s death. Evidence from an unrelated conviction also does not establish guilt in the current prosecution. The murder case will instead turn on the May events, the condition of the motel room, forensic testing, witness testimony and any statements a judge allows prosecutors to use. Defense attorneys may file motions seeking additional records or asking the court to suppress evidence. Prosecutors must disclose evidence that may help the defense as well as material they believe supports the charge. No trial date had been announced as of July 12.

Police have released limited information about Jensen-Green beyond her age, name and the circumstances in which officers found her. Her family provided a photograph to authorities and said it reflected how they wanted her remembered. The image showed Jensen-Green apart from the violent details contained in the arrest documents. Officials have not disclosed where she lived, why she was staying at the motel or how long she had known O’Brien before the bus encounter described in his interview. No family member has been quoted publicly offering a detailed statement about the prosecution. The lack of personal information has left the police narrative focused heavily on the room and the accused man’s words. Jensen-Green’s death nevertheless remains the central fact behind each court filing. Investigators are examining what happened to her, whether O’Brien acted deliberately and whether the evidence supports the most serious homicide charge available under Colorado law.

The location sits south of downtown Colorado Springs near Interstate 25, in a corridor that includes motels, restaurants, small businesses and steady vehicle traffic. Officers sealed the room while detectives documented the scene and gathered evidence. The case raised the city’s homicide count to six for the year at the time police announced O’Brien’s arrest. Police said Colorado Springs had recorded 16 homicides by the same point in 2025. Officials have not identified any additional suspect, and public reports do not indicate that investigators believe another person took part in the killing or concealment. The department continued to describe the investigation as active after the arrest. Detectives sought information from anyone who saw Jensen-Green or O’Brien before May 20 or who knew about their movements around the South Nevada Avenue property.

Until a court rules on that evidence, the first-degree murder charge remains an accusation awaiting further proceedings. The July 13 preliminary hearing is the next scheduled milestone. It may provide the first public courtroom account of how detectives connected the bloodstained room, the roommate’s report, O’Brien’s arrest and his alleged confession.

Author note: Last updated July 12, 2026.