Friends of former Hailey resident Kim Crofts are mystified over his shooting death in Panama last Friday evening.
"They had no enemies at all, which makes it impossible to have been a hit," said Melody Burt, a long-time friend in Panama. Burt was referring to Internet blogs from Panama that are speculating that Crofts was intentionally murdered.
Burt, a former Washington state resident who now lives in Bocas del Toro in northeast Panama near its border with Costa Rica, was one of the first people that Crofts' wife, Mary Austin Crofts, called after the shooting at about 9 p.m. Mary Austin Crofts is now staying with Burt while police in Bocas del Toro continue their investigation into Crofts' death.
Burt said the shooting was more likely part of an attempted robbery.
She said Crofts was shot several times "while pursuing the intruder who was running from the home."
"According to Mary there was a commotion from the bedroom," Burt said. "The intruder may have been looking for a wallet on the nightstand before he was confronted by Kim but then was fleeing and firing back as he ran."
Burt said police have determined that Crofts was killed with a .22 caliber handgun, an unlikely weapon for an international murder.
Additional information was not available by press deadline Tuesday from Panamanian police, the U.S. State Department or the U.S. Embassy in Panama.
Burt said a $5,000 reward has been collected for information leading to apprehension of the person who shot Crofts, and she hopes more money can be raised. Information on how to donate to the reward fund will be published in the Idaho Mountain Express when it becomes available.
Burt said Crofts' body will be cremated in Panama. Some of his ashes will be scattered there and the remainder will be returned and scattered in the Hailey area.
She said Mary Austin Crofts has numerous friends in the area who are helping her through the ordeal.
"She's doing as well as can be expected," Burt said. "She's feeling horrible, of course, but she's got a good support system here."
The Crofts lived on a small, remote island accessible only by boat. They moved to Panama four years ago when Mary Austin Crofts retired after 20 years of service as executive director of the Blaine County Recreation District.
"She's the reason we have the bike path," said Dave Keir, the district's recreation director. "That was the main thing she worked on when she was here."
Kim Crofts was a carpenter and a Hailey native.
"Kim was just an incredibly caring soul," said Keir. "He was just a standout guy.
"What would get my attention the most was just that Kim and Mary were deeply in love. You could tell that from their interactions together."
Keir is one of many Wood River Valley friends who have stayed in contact with the Crofts since they moved to Panama.
"She would send out e-mails of their life and adventures in Panama," he said. "They pretty much lived off the grid on an undeveloped island. It was kind of a pioneer life.
"From all accounts he was well liked in Panama," Keir said. "That's why this is such a mystery. He's going to be really missed for sure."
Kim Crofts and his wife, Mary Austin Crofts, former director of the Blaine County Recreation District, are shown just before they moved to Panama four years ago. Kim Crofts was shot to death last Friday evening in what may have been an attempted robbery at the couple’s home on an island in Bocas del Toro in northeast Panama.
Photo by Mountain Express
