HINCKLEY, MN - Police are investigating an "execution-style" murder that took place at a family's rural hunting cabin. Fox News reported that 31-year-old Kirk Edward Hazlett III, of Cambridge, is accused of shooting his father nine times while making relatives watch the gruesome murder.
According to the Pine County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) Hazlett is charged with two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of kidnapping, and one count of burglary. The victim has been identified as 62-year-old Kirk Edward Hazlett II. The incident took place on November 15th, at a cabin in Hinckley, Minnesota. Police said that tensions boiled over between the son and father, leading Hazlett to shoot and kill his father.
Police were first alerted to the fatal incident after receiving a 911 call reporting that a shooting had happened. The caller, later identified as the victim's brother, told police that the son had just shot his father. Police responded to the rural two-bedroom cabin that was owned by 62-year-old Hazlett and discovered the man lying face down on the floor near a couch.
Police said there were several casings of ammunition on the ground next to him. Court documents state that the elderly man was found with a "large amount of blood pooling on the ground near his head." He was pronounced dead at the scene.
A postmortem examination found that the victim was shot nine times, with one of them entering his head above his left ear and exiting at the right forehead. During the initial portion of the investigation, the victim's brother told police that he and another witness were finishing dinner when he received a notification on his phone from a trail camera that someone was approaching the home armed with a gun.
When he went to retrieve his gun from his bedroom, the witness heard three gunshots and saw his nephew holding a gun. The witness said that the 31-year-old allegedly directed his uncle and the other witness to sit on the couch. They said they feared for their lives, so they did what they were told believing that Hazlett would shoot them next.
The gunshot victim, as noted by his brother, was still alive at that point because he could be seen "breathing a little bit." However, moments later, Hazlett allegedly stood over his dad "and shot him in the head execution style." The witness said that Hazlett, the son, appeared like he had "entered with a mission ... He entered to kill him."
During the investigation, both witnesses told police that Hazlett III and the victim "weren't getting along and hadn't for a long time" and that he was "not in good relations with their family." According to KARE11, the son trespassed on the property about a month prior and police were called to intervene in a dispute between him and his father.
The witnesses said that the son appeared "very coherent" during the incident and that he "didn't appear under the influence" of any substances." Police later located Hazlett III at his Cambridge residence, where they took him into custody. He was booked into the Pine County Jail and had his first court appearance on Monday, November 18th. CBS News reported that his bond was set at $3 million with no conditions and $1 million with conditions.
According to the Pine County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) Hazlett is charged with two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of kidnapping, and one count of burglary. The victim has been identified as 62-year-old Kirk Edward Hazlett II. The incident took place on November 15th, at a cabin in Hinckley, Minnesota. Police said that tensions boiled over between the son and father, leading Hazlett to shoot and kill his father.
Police were first alerted to the fatal incident after receiving a 911 call reporting that a shooting had happened. The caller, later identified as the victim's brother, told police that the son had just shot his father. Police responded to the rural two-bedroom cabin that was owned by 62-year-old Hazlett and discovered the man lying face down on the floor near a couch.
Police said there were several casings of ammunition on the ground next to him. Court documents state that the elderly man was found with a "large amount of blood pooling on the ground near his head." He was pronounced dead at the scene.
A postmortem examination found that the victim was shot nine times, with one of them entering his head above his left ear and exiting at the right forehead. During the initial portion of the investigation, the victim's brother told police that he and another witness were finishing dinner when he received a notification on his phone from a trail camera that someone was approaching the home armed with a gun.
When he went to retrieve his gun from his bedroom, the witness heard three gunshots and saw his nephew holding a gun. The witness said that the 31-year-old allegedly directed his uncle and the other witness to sit on the couch. They said they feared for their lives, so they did what they were told believing that Hazlett would shoot them next.
The gunshot victim, as noted by his brother, was still alive at that point because he could be seen "breathing a little bit." However, moments later, Hazlett allegedly stood over his dad "and shot him in the head execution style." The witness said that Hazlett, the son, appeared like he had "entered with a mission ... He entered to kill him."
During the investigation, both witnesses told police that Hazlett III and the victim "weren't getting along and hadn't for a long time" and that he was "not in good relations with their family." According to KARE11, the son trespassed on the property about a month prior and police were called to intervene in a dispute between him and his father.
The witnesses said that the son appeared "very coherent" during the incident and that he "didn't appear under the influence" of any substances." Police later located Hazlett III at his Cambridge residence, where they took him into custody. He was booked into the Pine County Jail and had his first court appearance on Monday, November 18th. CBS News reported that his bond was set at $3 million with no conditions and $1 million with conditions.
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