Star Tribune
Minnesota farmhand kills boss; financial motive suspected
A longtime farmhand in southern Minnesota shot and killed his boss, a man whose death would bring the debt-ridden worker a “significant financial benefit,” according to a criminal complaint.
Travis J. Bauer, 46, of Winthrop, was charged Monday in Sibley County District Court with second-degree murder in connection with the shooting of Dennis D. Weitzenkamp, 79, on Sept. 20 about a mile north of Winthrop in the 54100 block of 266th Street.
Bauer was arrested and remains jailed in lieu of $500,000 bail. A message was left with his attorney seeking a response to the allegations. Bauer is due back in court on April 6.
Bauer had helped Weitzenkamp “farm his land for many years and was considered part of the family,” the complaint read.
Law enforcement’s review of Bauer’s finances showed that he “had significant debt and was behind on bills,” according to the complaint.
About an hour before Weitzenkamp was found dead, Bauer “received multiple phone calls informing [him] that he was late on payments for his home, and if the payments were not made, [he] could lose the home,” the complaint continued.
Trust documents disclosed to investigators that Bauer “would receive significant financial benefit” from Weitzenkamp’s death, the complaint added.
According to the complaint:
Bauer called 911 shortly after 2:30 p.m. and said Weitzenkamp was unresponsive. Bauer said he met him briefly about 10 to 15 minutes earlier.
Police Chief Logan Anderson arrived at the property and saw Weitzenkamp slumped to his left in a chair in the machine shed. A large pool of blood was below his head, which appeared to have a fresh wound. An autopsy revealed Weitzenkamp had been shot in the back of the head.
Bauer said he left the farm about 2:15 p.m. for an auto parts store and met Weitzenkamp driving toward the farm. Bauer said he returned, saw Weitzenkamp in the chair not responding to his name being called. Law enforcement analysis of Bauer’s and Weitzenkamp’s cellphones, however, showed they were both at the farm at or before 2:16 p.m.
The investigation revealed that the cap and pants Bauer had on that day had gunshot residue on them, even though he contended that he last fired a gun three weeks earlier.
According to his online obituary, Weitzenkamp moved to the Winthrop area in 1998 and continued to farm. He enjoyed “watching sports, playing cards, bowling, traveling with family, driving truck and wintering in Florida,” his obituary said.
He joined the National Guard in 1964 and served in the Army for one year starting in 1968, during the Vietnam War.
The Lynx are in the hot seat.
The team lost Game 3 of the WNBA Finals series against the New York Liberty on Wednesday night 77-80, setting the stage for a decisive match at Target Center on Friday night. Fans in the arena reacted with resounding disappointment after Sabrina Ionescu sunk a three-pointer to break away from the tie game and dashed the Lynx’s chance at forcing overtime.
Before we get to the reactions, first things first: The Lynx set an attendance record, filling Target Center with 19,521 spectators for the first time in franchise history. That’s nearly 500 more than when Caitlin Clark was in town with the Indiana Fever earlier this year.
Despite leading by double digits for much of the game, the Lynx began the fourth quarter with a one-point lead over the Liberty and struggled to stay more than two or three points ahead throughout.
The Liberty took the lead with minutes to go in the fourth quarter and folks were practically despondent.
Of course, there were people who were in it solely for the spectacle. Nothing more.
The Lynx took a commanding lead early in the first quarter and ended the first half in winning position, setting a particularly jovial mood among the fanbase to start the game.
Inside Target Center, arena announcers spent a few minutes before the game harassing Lynx fans — and Liberty fans — who had not yet donned the complementary T-shirts draped over every seat.
DULUTH – The Minnesota and Wisconsin transportation departments will make upgrades to the Richard I. Bong Memorial Bridge in the summer of 2025, in preparation for the structure to become the premiere route between this city and Superior during reconstruction of the Blatnik Bridge.
Built in 1961, the Blatnik Bridge carries 33,000 vehicles per day along Interstate 535 and Hwy. 53. It will be entirely rebuilt, starting in 2027, with the help of $1 billion in federal funding announced earlier this year. MnDOT and WisDOT are splitting the remaining costs of the project, about $4 million each.
According to MnDOT, projects on the Bong Bridge will include spot painting, concrete surface repairs to the bridge abutments, concrete sealer on the deck, replacing rubber strip seal membranes on the main span’s joints and replacing light poles on the bridge and its points of entry. It’s expected to take two months, transportation officials said during a recent meeting at the Superior Public Library.
During this time there will be occasional lane closures, detours at the off-ramps, and for about three weeks the sidewalk path alongside the bridge will be closed.
The Bong Bridge, which crosses the St. Louis River, opened to traffic in 1985 and is the lesser-used of the two bridges. Officials said they want to keep maintenance to a minimum on the span during the Blatnik project, which is expected to take four years.
Red Wing will celebrate the grand opening of its first permanent set of pickleball courts next week with an “inaugural play” on the six courts at Colvill Park on the banks of the Mississippi, between a couple of marinas and next to the aquatic center.
Among the first to get to play on the new courts will be David Anderson, who brought pickleball to the local YMCA in 2008, before the nationwide pickleball craze took hold, and Denny Yecke, at 92 the oldest pickleball player in Red Wing.
The inaugural play begins at 11 a.m. Tuesday, with a rain date of the next day. Afterward will be food and celebration at the Colvill Park Courtyard building.
Tim Sletten, the city’s former police chief, discovered America’s fastest-growing sport a decade ago after he retired. With fellow members of the Red Wing Pickleball Group, he’d play indoors at the local YMCA or outdoors at a local school, on courts made for other sports. But they didn’t have a permanent place, so they approached the city about building one.
When a city feasibility study came up with a high cost, about $350,000, Sletten’s group got together to raise money.
The courts are even opening ahead of schedule, originally set for 2025.
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