Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office detectives assigned to the U.S. Marshals Task Force, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service, arrested a 43-year-old Pueblo man in connection with the 2022 death of a man whose remains were found in a shallow grave in eastern Pueblo County.
Leon Pantoya was arrested on a warrant for first-degree murder in the death of 39-year-old Steven Robinson. Pantoya was also arrested for identity theft and theft and has been booked into the Pueblo County Jail.
Pantoya’s arrest follows a 3-year investigation led by Detective Vanessa Simpson.
On Sept. 25, 2022, detectives responded to a field in the 3500 block of 36th Lane after a property owner reported finding possible human remains in a shallow grave. Forensic analysis confirmed the remains were human. An autopsy determined the victim had suffered blunt force and sharp force trauma, and the manner of death was ruled a homicide.
In late 2022, the unidentified man was entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System database. Although no matches were made, several leads were generated.
In March 2023, a DNA profile was developed, but no matches were found. A forensic artist created a reconstruction image, which was shared publicly, but few leads resulted.
With assistance from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, the victim’s DNA was later submitted to a genetic genealogy database. In late 2024, a match was found with a relative, leading to the positive identification of the victim as Steven Robinson.
Originally from South Carolina, Robinson had moved to Pueblo in 2017. Detectives learned Robinson had been living with Pantoya at the time of his death in early January 2022. Pantoya told Robinson’s friends and landlord that Robinson had died of pneumonia on Jan. 22, 2022. Investigators later determined Robinson’s remains were buried on property owned by one of Pantoya’s relatives.
The investigation also revealed Pantoya had withdrawn more than $75,000 from Robinson’s bank account, where Robinson’s military disability payments continued to be deposited for more than a year after his death.
Sheriff David J. Lucero praised Detective Simpson’s work.
“Detective Simpson has been dedicated and committed to solving this case for years, and, ironically, an arrest was made three years and a day since this investigation began,” said Sheriff Lucero. “She worked tirelessly not only to identify the victim but also to investigate the homicide and identify a suspect. Bringing closure to this case is a testament to modern science and solid investigative police work.”
Anyone with information related to this case is asked to contact Detective Simpson at (719) 583- 6436.
Republished courtesy of Pueblo County Sheriff's Office