Midwest
Minnesota dad told landlord he 'already dug a hole' before executing daughter's boyfriend for suspected abuse
A Minnesota father was sentenced to life in prison without parole on Monday for the brutal murder of his daughter’s allegedly abusive boyfriend after telling a witness he had “already dug a hole” for the man’s grave.
Michael Lee Laflex, 46, was found guilty on one count of first-degree premeditated murder and another of second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Bryce Brogle in April, according to court records reviewed by Fox News Digital. In addition to his sentence, he was ordered to pay $14,596.08 in restitution and court fees by Crow Wing County District Court Judge Charles D. Halverson.
Laflex’s daughter reported her boyfriend missing to the Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office on Oct. 28, 2022, according to a criminal complaint obtained by Law & Crime. Her boyfriend was last seen accompanying her father to a storage unit that Laflex had rented two days earlier.
Laflex was interviewed by investigators and initially claimed that Brogle had been placed under arrest by “unknown law enforcement” who confiscated his two cell phones, per the complaint. He later changed his story, saying that he had thrown both of the phones out at a gas station in Brainerd. Both phones were eventually recovered by police.
MINNESOTA MAN WHO JOINED THE ISLAMIC STATE GROUP IS SENTENCED TO 10 YEARS IN PRISON
Michael Laflex. (Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office)
The landlord of the home rented by Brogle and Laflex’s daughter contacted investigators, telling them that Laflex had called him to ask if Brogle had ever hurt his daughter.
“The landlord shared that the landlord had seen [Laflex’s daughter] with two black eyes,” the complaint states. “(Laflex) then said he was going to kill Brogle and had already dug the hole.”
Another witness came forward to the police with information that had been relayed to them by one of Laflex’s family members. Laflex had shot Brogle at the Ossipee-area storage unit on Oct. 26, 2022, that witness said in their sworn statement.
BAG OF CASH DOESN’T STOP JURORS FROM CONVICTING 5 DEFENDANTS IN $40 MILLION FOOD FRAUD SCHEME
Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office. (Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office)
“The details included but were not limited to that Michael (Laflex) believed Brogle had been abusing his daughter,” read the statement, per Law & Crime. “Laflex was said to have cleaned up the unit using bleach. Laflex further informed the family member that he had disposed of the body and Brogle would not be found as it had been buried. It was said some sort of sled was used to move Brogle’s body at one point.”
BODIES OF MISSING MINNESOTA FISHERMEN PULLED FROM BOUNDARY WATERS
Michael Laflex was sentenced to life in prison without parole at Crow Wing County Judicial Center on Monday. (Google Maps)
When they executed a search warrant on the storage unit, police wrote, they found blood that someone had attempted to clean with bleach on the concrete floor. Marks on the ground were “consistent with something being dragged across the floor in a similar width to a sled,” according to the complaint.
Authorities identified Brogle’s possible gravesite in an Oct. 30, 2022 foot search, according to the complaint.
“The site was excavated and a body with an apparent gunshot wound to the back of the head was recovered and transported to the Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy,” the complaint states. “The autopsy determined the cause of death to be a distant gunshot wound to the back of the head. The body has been identified as Bryce Brogle.”
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Southwest goes red, white and blue for America’s 250. See new plane.
Southwest unveils “Independence One,” a Boeing 737 with “1776” and “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness” splashed on the sides of it.
The world’s largest steam train is passing through Illinois as part of its 10-state route across the United States this summer.
The locomotive, officially known as Big Boy No. 4014, is heading east across the Mississippi River starting in late May to help celebrate America’s 250th birthday.
Here’s what we know about the train’s stops in Illinois.
What is Big Boy No. 4014?
Delivered to Union Pacific in 1941, the locomotive was among 25 built to haul wartime freight across the Continental Divide in Wyoming and Utah. Big Boy is the last one running, and in the 1960s was converted to burn oil instead of coal.
Big Boy is 133 feet long and weighs 1.2 million pounds. It traveled more than 1 million miles during its working life hauling freight between Cheyenne and Ogden, Utah. The train typically draws large crowds of rail enthusiasts, and it’s common to see superfans with cameras in hand chasing it in cars.
“Union Pacific couldn’t be prouder to share this powerful piece of history with the nation and to be a part of America’s birthday celebration,” Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena said in a statement. “This tour celebrates our company’s rich 164-year history, our nation’s amazing story and the people who have helped build our great country and our railroad.”
When does Big Boy’s route begin? Where will it depart from?
The train will depart from Union Pacific’s headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska, on May 25.
This will be the first time it has crossed the Mississippi River since its westward delivery run in 1941, according to railroad officials.
Where is Big Boy stopping in Illinois? When will world’s biggest train be on display?
The train will stop at the Union Pacific Training Center in West Chicago on June 3. It will be on display south of the West Chicago Metra stop from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. central time.
Admission is free, with no tickets required.
Where can residents watch Big Boy pass through Illinois?
Rail fans can also see the train in action at whistle-stops, generally lasting 15-30 minutes long.
The train will pass B Street Crossing in Sterling, Illinois, between 1:30 and 2 p.m. on Tuesday, June 2. It will then pass by Rochelle Railroad Park in Rochelle from 3-3:15 p.m.
After reaching its eastmost stop in Philadelphia, the train will then head back out west, passing by the Amtrak Depot in Springfield between 10:45-11:15 a.m. on Saturday, July 18. The last public view of the train in Illinois will be at Center St. Crossing in Girard between 1-1:30 p.m.
Full list of Big Boy stops
Big Boy will make the following stops on its journey out east:
- May 30 – Omaha, Nebraska
- June 3 – West Chicago, Illinois
- June 10 – Buffalo, New York
- June 15-16 – Scranton, Pennsylvania
- July 4-5 – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- July 9-10 – Altoona, Pennsylvania
- July 14 – Fostoria, Ohio
- July 19 – St. Louis, Missouri
Track Big Boy as it travels across the US
Union Pacific will provide a real-time location tracker for Big Boy, allowing rail fanatics to follow the train on its coast-to-coast tour.
When do tickets for Big Boy go on sale?
Union Pacific Museum patrons will have early ticket access beginning May 1 at 9 a.m. central time. Tickets will go on sale for the general public on May 4.
FULTON COUNTY, Ind. (WSBT) — The Fulton County Area Plan Commission and Data Center Ordinance Review Committee are being sued by a resident who believes they are not complying with Indiana’s Open Door Law.
They’ve decided that transparency is not that important,” said Richard O’Neill, a Fulton County resident suing the Area Plan Commission.
Back in March, county commissioners voted 2-1 to approve a one-year data center moratorium, as talk of a possible data center in Akron picked up.
After that vote, the data center review committee was formed to review regulations and look at how other communities handle data centers.
But some residents said they’re concerned the public can’t attend or even listen in on those meetings.
I’m suing them to get an injunction to stop this committee until such time that they’re willing to have public meetings. So you don’t want the public there, fine, live stream it. They wouldn’t do that. So you have to ask yourself, what do they want to hide?” said O’Neill.
Other community members weighed in on the transparency issues.
When the committee was formed, the county attorney and Area Plan decided to place in the regulations that this committee would be closed to the public. Several people argued this decision and requested it not be closed so the community could feel involved. I stressed and stated at the Area Plan meeting on March 30th that currently the public trust with our local government is at an all time low and this committee not honoring the open door law would only make things worse,” said James Zimmerman, Fulton County resident.
Indiana’s Open Door Law states:
“Government agencies must hold official meetings of a majority of their governing body, such as council or board meetings, publicly. As a citizen, you have the right to attend and record these meetings.”
But the committee said it doesn’t have to follow that law because it’s not considered a “governing body.”
WSBT22 reached out to the committee’s executive director, but has not yet received a response.
The county attorney feels that they’re in the right and my attorney feels we’re in the right. So we’ll find out from the court,” said O’Neill.
O’Neill said that he’s currently waiting for a different judge to be appointed to his case to set a court date, which should be any day now.
The Iowa Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big with rewards ranging from $1,000 to millions. The most an Iowan has ever won from playing the lottery was $343 million in 2018 off the Powerball.
Don’t miss out on the winnings. Here’s a look at Thursday, April 30, 2026, winning numbers for each game:
Winning Pick-3 numbers from April 30 drawing
Midday: 4-8-6
Evening: 9-8-6
Check Pick-3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick-4 numbers from April 30 drawing
Midday: 1-7-7-2
Evening: 9-5-3-2
Check Pick-4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from April 30 drawing
05-19-21-42-55, Bonus: 03
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Iowa Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 3 (Day): 12:20 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 3 (Evening): 10:00 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 4 (Day): 12:20 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 4 (Evening): 10:00 p.m. CT daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by an Iowa editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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