Harris, Michael Wayne

Michael Wayne Harris was born in Arlington, VA December 16, 1950. He is remembered by his son, Pat Harris, as a fun-loving guy. They would go rafting, target shooting and four-wheeling together – anything fun. Michael was a mechanic. Michael also worked some as a miner. Married and divorced, he had three sons. But Michael Harris also had an addiction to drugs. He went through rehab to get off cocaine and alcohol. As Pat tells it, his dad was involved in a pot growing operation on the western slope of Colorado with several others including Tom Willsey and Keith Bergstrom. Keith and Michael wanted out. Michael went to Montrose but didn’t take his gun. Michael went missing July 8, 1989. His body was found in Mesa County by a bow hunter four miles west of Highway 65 near Lands End Road on October 18, 1991. He suffered gunshot wounds to the head and neck. Willsey had showed up at Bergstrom’s house in Michael’s jeep and shot Keith Bergstrom in the head in July 1989. But Bergstrom survived and Willsey was found guilty of attempted murder. He was sentenced to 32 years in prison, but he is now eligible for parole. No one has been prosecuted for the murder of Michael Wayne Harris. If you have information related to this crime, please call Sgt Weather of the Mesa Counties Complex Crime Unit at 970-244-3265.