Man R*ped And Killed Friend’s Daughter After Spending Night At His Home

For today’s case, we’re heading to Watkins, Minnesota, a town with a population of approximately 1,000 people. Watkins is a small community. In July of 2016, residents were still recovering from a tornado that had torn through town, leaving piles of debris in its wake. >> Extensive damage was seen in Watkins.

25 houses were damaged, 12 of them received major damage, and five businesses were also damaged. In Watkins, Monday night brought the storms. Tuesday morning brought the cleanup. >> People were still trying to get back to normal and rebuild while the long summer evening slowly settled in. One member of this small community was Alaina, who at just 5 years old had already made a lasting impression.

Alaina loved everything pink and purple, enjoyed dressing up, but at the same time loved being outdoors and getting dirty while playing with her dad, Matt. Her mom, Kayla, said she was friends with everyone, and if she ever missed a day of school, people noticed right away. She was a fearless child, always ready for anything, even climbing onto the roof of a barn to help her dad repair it.

Kayla said, “She was our little sweet pea. Everybody loved her. She was always smiling and hugging everyone.” She adored her older brother and loved learning from him. Life was good for the family, and in just 2 months, they were going to celebrate Alaina’s sixth birthday on Halloween. Alaina’s father, Matt, went to Riverside Tavern at 10:30 that night with his friend and co-worker, Zachary Anderson, who also played with him in a local softball league.

After the game, they headed out to relax with other members of the team, something they regularly did. After a few drinks, the bar closed at 1:00 in the morning, and they moved on. They then went to Gordy’s bar, just a few blocks from the home where Matt lived with his family. Meanwhile, at home around 2:00 in the morning, Alaina was asleep in the living room.

Kayla picked her up, carried her to bed, and tucked her in with her favorite Elsa blanket, which she slept with every night. Matt returned home at 2:30 in the morning and Zachary arrived sometime between 3:30 and 3:45. He and Matt talked until 4:00 before going to sleep. Zachary staying overnight at their house was nothing unusual.

At 8:30 on the morning of August 20th, 2016, when the parents woke up, they realized Alaina was not in her bed. She wasn’t in her room or anywhere in the house. Panic began building quickly and then they noticed that not only was Matt’s work truck, a 2002 GMC Sierra missing, but so were his phone and Zachary. As Matthew and Kayla searched everywhere around them, they realized it was time to call law enforcement.

Police were contacted at 9:56 that morning. It was obvious this could be an abduction, so at 1:12 in the afternoon, the decision was made to issue an Amber Alert. Friends, let me interrupt for just a moment. I’m really curious where my audience is watching from. So, I’d love for you to tell me what city you’re watching this video from and what time it is there.

Thanks for your attention. Leave it in the comments and I’ll continue. >> It’s a developing story at 5:00. The BCA has issued an Amber Alert for a 5-year-old girl from Watkins. This is Alaina Ertle and she was last seen at her house at 2:00 in the morning. According to investigators, family say they noticed her missing about 8:00 this morning.

According to police, Anderson has no sex offender history and they aren’t sure of a motive. The BCA says that Anderson now has a shaggy short beard and may be wearing a black T-shirt like this that says Riverside, Minnesota softball. >> News of the search spread quickly throughout Watkins and nobody could believe what was happening. Investigators [music] tried to gather as much information as possible hoping someone had seen or heard something, anything, suspicious or unusual.

The area was searched and investigators also contacted Zachary’s cell phone provider in an effort to track his phone. Detectives learned that around 8:30 that morning, Zachary had been seen at a store near Browerville. He was alone and there was no sign of Alaina. Police understood that one possible lead was tracking Matt’s phone, which had been left inside the truck.

Time was working against them, so every lead had to be checked as quickly as possible. They received information suggesting Zachary may have been in Todd County around 6:30 that morning because Matt’s phone had connected to a cell tower there. The last signal was recorded at 9:00 that morning still in Todd County, after which the phone was turned off.

Less than an hour after the Amber Alert was issued, another call came into the Cass County Sheriff’s Office. It was Zachary’s father. He said he believed his son was involved and that he had important information. According to him, earlier that day his son had called and asked if he could go to the family cabin in Mahtomedi, approximately 90 miles from Watkins.

He also gave police permission to search the property. Without wasting any time, law enforcement headed there immediately hoping that if the information was accurate, they could still make it in time. As they drove, thousands of thoughts raced through their minds. What would they find there? Would they be able to find Alaina and bring her home? And what had really happened? Near Wilderness Park in rural Cass County, officers arrived on scene.

As the search began, they quickly discovered the first major clue, the truck taken from the family’s home was parked on Anderson family property in a ravine. Based on how it had been positioned, it appeared someone had tried to hide it. They continued toward the cabin and soon arrived. As they searched room by room, their hearts racing, they had no idea what they they find.

What they discovered only deepened their concern. A firearm, ammunition, and a note believed to have been written by Zachary stating that he wanted to harm himself. There was blood in the upper corner, but where was Zachary? And where had he taken Alaina? Officers left the cabin and followed tracks leading into the nearby woods.

Cass County Deputy William Conner and his canine partner Yankee began searching. Returning to the truck near the cabin, Yankee picked up a scent and began pulling Conner toward a swamp. At 4:24 in the afternoon, approximately a quarter mile from the cabin, Zachary Anderson was found standing knee-deep in water in a swampy area with cuts on his arms. He did not resist arrest.

One of the officers asked, “Where’s the little girl?” “What little girl?” he replied. Investigators read Zachary his rights and three times he stated that he did not want to talk to them. At that point, they did not know whether Alaina was alive and they told him they needed to bring her home to her family.

They added that he could help them do that. He replied, “I don’t know anything.” Over the next several minutes, they continued urging him to tell them where she was. “Is that little girl here in the swamp or do we need to go somewhere else to find her?” “In the swamp?” he answered quietly.

They asked him two more times to repeat what he had said, then asked if he could lead them to her body. He requested a cigarette, then led them where they needed to go. Pointing to a location in the swamp, they found Alaina’s naked body submerged in the water and concealed beneath debris in the southern portion of Wilderness Park Estates.

A canine unit also located an area approximately 75 ft away. The trail led from the cabin and that was where they found her favorite frozen blanket. At 6:02 that evening, Sheriff Brian Cruise announced that the Amber Alert could be canceled. This was no longer a missing child case. It had become a homicide investigation. >> I just couldn’t sleep tonight.

I just thought about it. >> Craig Speldrick is among those living inside the Wilderness Park private estates. It’s where the body of Alaina Ertle was found in a swamp just beyond the Anderson family cabin. >> And I decided something had to be done. >> Speldrick built a tasteful timber cross for Alaina, a place where others are now purging their grief.

>> And the people here are absolutely offended, you know? They are They They’re heartbroken. >> What was the pretty tight community really? >> Folks like Ray Scholtes and Anna Cash are stopping to pay respects to a child they never knew but can’t stop thinking about. >> The community here sadness is as if they had lived here.

>> I mean it doesn’t really matter where you are what you who you are where you’re from but when it you know when something happens so close to home. >> Ray actually recalls seeing Anderson briefly at last Saturday’s annual meeting. >> Yeah, he came down to the clubhouse, you know? And he was just all muddy and dirty.

Must have just come out of the swamp. >> Now it’s a Northwoods community left in mourning over a crime so unthinkable. >> It’s It’s heartbreaking. That’s all. It’s emotional. It’s extremely emotional. >> She’ll never be forgotten up there. >> Weren’t for that canine team, uh that suspect’s capture would have at [music] at least been delayed if not you know, wouldn’t have happened.

>> Steve Pearson trains police dogs. He says it was Cass County Deputy Bill Connor’s dog Yankee that ultimately led authorities to a swampy area in the woods about a quarter mile from the cabin. Pearson trained Yankee roughly 5 years ago. >> Their ability to smell and and and and follow that odor is just absolutely remarkable.

>> Pearson says because authorities didn’t have an item of clothing for Yankee to go off of, he believes the German Shepherd tracked Anderson’s fierce scent. Police say Anderson initially said, “What girl?” when they asked about Alaina. >> Those officers when they got to that cabin had no idea where to start.

They they tried using the helicopter to find uh you know, people down in in the in the woods and whatnot. I I have no doubt that he would have gotten away. >> According to preliminary findings, Alaina died from asphyxiation and also suffered blunt force trauma. Evidence of sexual assault was also discovered.

25-year-old Zachary including one count of second-degree intentional murder, one count of criminal sexual conduct involving a victim under 13, one count of kidnapping to commit a felony, and one count of kidnapping with intent to inflict great bodily harm. His bail was set at either $1 million with conditions or $2 million without conditions.

For the small community of Watkins, it was difficult even to comprehend how something like this could happen. >> We’re pretty close-knit people around here. >> Swapping stories over coffee can take a whole afternoon when you’re in your 80s. >> It’s unbelievable. >> Even for two friends who’ve seen a lot over the years, these past few days have been too much.

>> It shouldn’t happen for a young kid that small and and it should never happen. >> I’ve seen her around town. I’d go for walks, she’d wave, say hi. Just a small girl she was. >> Alice Lister can hardly find words to describe what all of Watkins is feeling. >> It’s been rough. I mean, Watkins has been through a lot.

We’ve lost a lot, but we’ve all come together. It’s a family community. >> A town of a thousand where everyone seems to know everyone and their pain. >> A tragedy like this is unbelievable. Just something that doesn’t happen here. >> As these old friends struggle to understand what has happened, their long lives keep teaching them one important lesson.

>> We will survive. That’s a community that uh has a lot of heartfelt feelings between each other. But we will survive. >> Candlelight vigils were held. People gathered together in an effort to process what had happened and support the family. “I just feel helpless.” one attendee said.

“I think the entire state is in shock. A small town in central Minnesota, this just can’t happen.” A GoFundMe was created to help the family and the goal of $15,000 was reached in just 15 hours. >> There are still some people out here tonight. It seems as if the entire town came to this church parking lot for a service to honor Alaina.

Now, some people were just too stricken with grief to speak to us, but everyone here came together to be surrounded by friends and family, those who knew and loved the sweet 5-year-old. >> Sounds of Frozen, Alaina’s favorite, came before prayer. >> Beautiful. Shy. >> [snorts] >> Liked to play. >> More people than you could count filled the St.

Anthony Catholic Church parking lot. A way to come together to remember a vibrant girl who was never without a smile. >> Like you just want to be here to support the community and the family and for this little girl who lost her life. It’s just It’s sad. >> Many wrestle with why this 5-year-old with so much life ahead of her was taken. >> I just want to know why.

What possesses people to do this? >> Parents who have lost a child share in the family’s sorrow. >> I’m so sorry that this happened to them. I’m so sorry it happened to her. >> The fact that it was someone Alaina’s family knew and trusted made everything even more horrifying. Court records showed that he had previously only accumulated a few minor traffic violations.

We have no information that he was a sexual predator or anything like that, Sheriff Cruz said. We don’t know the motive. We just don’t understand why this happened. A man named John, who grew up with Matt and knew Zachary through the local softball league, said, He seemed like a normal guy. Everybody liked him. He was always smiling.

That’s why this is so hard to accept. People trusted him. He seemed like a good person. But as investigators dug deeper into Zachary’s past, troubling details began to emerge. Let’s go back to May of 2006. Zachary was 16 years old and living with his mother next door to a 31-year-old single woman who had two young children. She later told Wright County investigators that Zachary would leave notes on her windshield.

In them, he wrote that he thought she was beautiful, left his phone number, and suggested she call if she wanted him to be her boyfriend. She also suspected he had stolen cigarettes from her when she accidentally left her garage open. Then, in December, his behavior became even more disturbing and unpredictable. One morning, around 1:30, she woke up to the sound of someone violently pounding on her front door. It was Zachary.

He was wearing only his underwear and demanded that she open the door and sleep with him. He attempted to force the door open. He quickly ran off when the woman’s boyfriend came to the door, but Zachary didn’t stop there. In June of 2007, she was asleep upstairs with her children. Zachary removed a window screen downstairs, entered the home, grabbed her phone from a table in the living room, and fled.

He was charged with theft and first-degree burglary. He later pleaded guilty to third-degree burglary, received community service, and was ordered to write a letter of apology. The court also prohibited him from having any contact with the woman. She was so afraid of him that she eventually moved away. >> Because Zachary Anderson was a juvenile at the time, the incident didn’t make the news or appear on his public record.

>> When news broke of his arrest in this case, she said she never could have imagined his behavior would escalate to this level. I felt sick. I was shocked and upset, she said. She added that she hoped her story would help other potential victims find the courage to speak up. Zachary pleaded not guilty to 19 charges including first-degree murder, first-degree criminal sexual conduct, kidnapping, and abuse of a corpse.

It later became known that his attorney attempted to have evidence collected at the scene excluded. Zachary repeatedly told officers that he was exercising his right to remain silent and did not want to speak with them, but they continued questioning him. Cass County Judge Jana Austad ruled that investigators had violated proper interrogation procedures.

This meant his initial statements could not be used in court. The fact that he led them to the location and identified where Alaina could be found also could not be used as evidence because he’d already invoked his right to remain silent under the Fifth Amendment. However, prosecutors argued that Alaina would have been found regardless using all available resources including a helicopter and canine units.

Zachary’s public defender, Scott Collins, also asked the court to dismiss the charges arguing that there was insufficient basis for them because his constitutional rights had been violated. The court denied the motion and all 19 charges remained in effect. His attorneys also sought to exclude details surrounding the discovery of Alaina’s body, the clothing and blankets found nearby, and the results of the examination of her body.

The court denied that motion as well stating, “The evidence in this case shows that the discovery of Alaina’s body and blanket was entirely independent of Anderson’s unconstitutional actions when he identified the location. Not admitted into evidence were his statement, I don’t know anything, his comments in the swamp, and the fact that he led police to the location.

Admitted into evidence were the clothing and blankets that were found, the discovery of the body itself, the body as evidence, all materials collected during the examination, and all photographs. A pretrial hearing was scheduled, but another development soon followed. Zachary ultimately pleaded guilty to first-degree murder involving sexual penetration.

The remaining 18 charges were dismissed. Immediately after entering the plea, he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Our goal was the maximum punishment allowed under Minnesota law, life imprisonment without release. And that is exactly what this guilty plea accomplished, said Cass County Prosecutor Benjamin Lindstrom.

The family was determined to keep her spirit and memory alive. Just 2 months after her murder would have been her sixth birthday, October 31st. Her mother decided to hold a birthday celebration for her, and it grew into an incredible charitable initiative. >> A family still struggling with the loss of their little girl is helping other families fighting their own heartache.

>> Sharing Alaina’s love became the name of the project and that became its mission. The charity placed members of the community at the center of everything it did. >> in Motley. Today, the Ertl family held a fundraiser called Sharing Alaina’s love. Proceeds went to a family whose daughter is fighting cancer.

Alexis Bossen was diagnosed with a rare type of bone cancer last September. >> I’ve been putting on wristbands. I’ve helped do some stuff around for the silent auction and it’s been really fun. >> Kayla said it became a way for her to turn pain into something positive whether through toy donations to a local hospital or creating gift packages for children in need and just keep showing people who Elena was and the joy she brought to everyone.

At one point Kayla told Elena that a sunset meant someone in heaven was watching over us. After her daughter’s death she began seeing Elena in those sunsets. A month before Elena was taken from this world a tornado tore through their community. In the days that followed people came together not because they weren’t hurting but because they were.

They lifted what could be saved they rebuilt where rebuilding was possible and where the destruction was too great they planted something new in the place of the ruins. The same thing happened after Elena’s murder. Elena’s story is one of unimaginable devastation the kind no community and no family should ever have to endure.

There are things that will never be rebuilt wounds that will never fully heal questions that will never be answered. There is pain that simply becomes part of this world but even after this tragedy people showed up for one another. They grieved together they remembered together because that is what we do in the face of the unthinkable.