Charges: Grandmother killed with hatchet in Kanabec County

Disclaimer the details in this story are disturbing.

A man in Ogilvie, Minnesota faces a felony murder charge after his grandmother was found brutally killed with a hatchet in her home earlier in the week. 

Dustin Tinklenberg, 42, was charged with 2nd-degree murder in connection to the death of his grandmother Stella Anderson, 92. Tinklenberg made his first court appearance Friday, and his bail was set at $1 million with conditions and $2 million without conditions. 

The Kanabec County Sheriff’s Office said on Sept. 13, deputies responded to a home in the 1300 block of Highway 23 in Ogilvie on the report of a woman who had been found dead on her couch, according to the criminal complaint. 

First responders entered the home and found a woman who was "clearly deceased" and did not check for her pulse. Law enforcement said Anderson was lying on the couch with a "major laceration" on her face which was "severely deformed," the criminal complaint reads.

Investigators said Anderson’s nose, which was no longer attached to her face, was placed on top of the blanket covering her body, the complaint states.

Anderson’s daughter, Linda Lang-Smith, told authorities she found her mother after she arrived at the residence to visit with her and help with some chores. When she entered the home, she thought her mother was napping on the couch. 

However, when Lang-Smith tried to wake her mother, she saw Anderson's face and "thought she was seeing things." Lang-Smith quickly ran out of the house and contacted the authorities, according to the complaint.

When investigators arrived at the home, multiple family members were on the front lawn. Anderson’s son told authorities he believed Tinklenberg was responsible for the murder and asked if they had found him yet, the complaint states. 

Law enforcement later located Tinklenberg at the residence of a former significant other and took him into custody. Tinklenberg told law enforcement he would sometimes stay with his grandmother because he was homeless. 

While talking with investigators, Tinklenberg claimed his grandmother had sexually assaulted him as a child, and she continually harasses him and "takes advantage of him," the criminal complaint reads.

He claimed before the attack, there was another alleged incident of sexual assault, the complaint states. A short time later, he claimed his grandmother had somehow manipulated/altered the bacon he was eating.

"So I lost it," Tinklenberg allegedly told investigators, according to the complaint. 

The Ramsey County Medical Examiner said Anderson suffered seven sharp force injuries to the head. Her manner of death was determined to be a homicide, according to court documents. 

Tinklenberg is scheduled to appear in court next week. 

Crime and Public Safety