Gary Herbst's Wife, Son Charged In His Death Following Years Of Investigation
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Three years after the discovery of an Elk New Market man's remains, his wife and son are now charged in his death.
According to the Scott County Attorney's Office, 62-year-old Connie Lou Herbst and 26-year-old Austin James Herbst, both of New Prague, face second-degree aiding and abetting second-degree intentional murder in connection to Gary Herbst death in July 2013.
The attorney's office says Gary Herbst was reported as a missing person to Elko New Market Police Department in 2014 and his remains were later found in Maple Grove Township in Barron County, Wisconsin in late 2017. That's when Gary Herbst's skull was found with a bullet hole.
According to the complaint, both claimed that Gary Herbst left and never returned in 2013. Later, Austin Herbst admitted that things had gotten bad in their home and that Gary Herbst was verbally and physically abusive toward his mother. He did not deny involvement in his father's homicide, the complaint said.
Connie Herbst and Austin Herbst were arrested without incident Thursday morning following the result of several years of investigation.
"These arrests in this cold case were the result of tremendous multi-agency teamwork, spanning across state lines," Sheriff Luke Hennen said.
If both are convicted, they could face up to 40 years in prison.
