You Won’t Believe This Case… Even The Judge Broke Down In Tears! | True Crime Story

You Won’t Believe This Case… Even The Judge Broke Down In Tears! | True Crime Story 

 

 

A developing story at 5:00, the BCA has issued an Amber Alert for a 5-year-old girl from Watkins. This is Alaina Ertle, and she was last seen at her house at 2:00 in the morning. According to investigators, family say they noticed her missing about 8:00 this morning. That morning, her bed was empty. A 5-year-old girl had vanished without a trace.

And she wasn’t alone. Her favorite Elsa blanket was gone, too, along with a man the family trusted enough to let stay the night in their home. As the small town of Watkins was still trying to recover from a devastating tornado, another nightmare hit. A stolen pickup truck, a phone that suddenly went silent, a stretch of swamp land miles away from home, and one question that sends chills down your spine, what really happened to Alaina while everyone was asleep? How could someone everyone knew end up at the center of something so horrifying?

And what exactly did investigators discover at the place where that road finally came to an end? This is the story of Alaina Franson. All right, guys. Let me pause for just a minute. I’m really curious where all of you are watching from. So, I’d love to ask, what city are you in, and what time  is it for you right now? Thanks for taking a moment.

 Drop it in the comments, and I’ll keep going. Today, we’re heading to Watkins. A town of about 1,000 people, Watkins is the kind of place where everyone knows everyone. Back in July 2016, the community was still trying to recover from a devastating tornado that had torn through the area, leaving behind piles of debris and broken  homes.

 People were doing their best to rebuild, to get back to normal as those long summer evenings slowly settled in again. And in the middle of the small, close-knit town, was Alaina, a little girl who, even at just 5 years old, had already made a lasting impression. She loved everything pink and purple, loved dressing up and playing pretend, but at the same time, she was drawn to the outdoors.

She didn’t mind getting dirty, laughing and playing in the mud with her dad, Matt. Her mom, Kayla, used to say Alaina was a friend to everyone. If she missed even a single day of school, people noticed. She was fearless, always ready for an adventure, even climbing up onto the roof of the shed just to help her dad fix it.

 Kayla affectionately called her our little nut. Everyone loved her. She was always smiling, always ready to give someone a hug. Alaina adored her older brother and loved copying everything he did. Life for their family was happy, steady, and in just 2 months, they were planning to celebrate her sixth birthday on Halloween.

 On August 19th, 2016, Alaina’s dad, Matt, went out after a softball game with his friend and co-worker, Zachary Anderson. They played in the same local league, and heading to the bar afterward was just part of the routine. Around 10:30 that night, they went to Riverside Tavern to unwind with the team. After a few drinks, the bar closed at 1:00 in the morning, and they decided to keep the night going.

 They stopped by Gordy’s bar, just a few blocks from Matt’s house. Around 2:00 in the morning, back at home, Alaina had fallen asleep in the living room. Kayla gently carried her to bed and tucked her in with her favorite Elsa blanket, the one she slept with every single night. Matt got home around 2:30, Zachary arrived later, sometime between 3:30 and 3:45.

The two of them stayed up talking until about 4:00 in the morning before finally going to sleep. It wasn’t unusual, Zachary often stayed over. But then, at 8:30 that morning, August 20th, everything changed. When her parents woke up, they realized Alaina wasn’t in her bed. She wasn’t in her room. She wasn’t anywhere in the house.

 Panic set in fast, and then they noticed something even worse. Matt’s work pickup, a 2002 GMC Sierra, was gone. His phone was gone, and so was Zachary. As Matthew and Kayla searched frantically around the house and property, it became clear this was bigger than they could handle. They needed help. The call to law enforcement came in at 9:56 that morning, and even then, it was already being treated as a possible abduction.

By 1:12 that afternoon, an Amber Alert had been issued. Developing story at 5:00, the BCA has issued an Amber Alert for a 5-year-old girl from Watkins. This is Alaina Ertle, and she was last seen at her house at 2:00 in the morning. According to investigators, family say they noticed her missing about 8:00 this morning.

 According to police, Anderson has no sex offender history, and they aren’t sure of a motive. The BCA says that Anderson now has a shaggy short beard and may be wearing a black T-shirt like this that says Riverside, Minnesota Softball. News of the search spread quickly through Watkins, and people could hardly believe what they were hearing.

 Officers moved fast, trying to gather as much information as possible. They hoped someone might have seen or heard something, anything out of the ordinary, something that didn’t quite fit. The area was being searched, and investigators reached out to Zachary’s cell provider, trying to track his phone. They soon learned that around 8:30 that morning, he had been seen at a store near Browerville. He was alone.

 There were no signs of Alaina with him. At that point, police realized they had another possible lead, Matt’s phone, which had been left inside the pickup truck. Time was working against them, so every lead had to be checked as quickly as possible. Information came in suggesting that around 6:30 that morning, Zachary may have been in Todd County.

 Matt’s phone had pinged off a cell tower there. The last signal was recorded at 9:00 that morning, also in Todd County, and then the phone went dead. Less than an hour after the Amber Alert was issued, another call came in, this time to the Sheriff’s Office in Cass County. >>  >> It was Zachary’s father. He told them, honestly, he believed his son might be involved in the Amber Alert, and that he had important information.

 Earlier that day, Zachary had called him, asking if he could go to the family cabin in Motley, about 90 miles from Watkins. He also gave police permission to search the property. There was no time to waste. Officers headed out immediately, hoping that if this lead was real, they might still have a chance to get there in time.

And as they drove, you can imagine the thoughts running through their minds. What were they about to find? Was Alaina still alive? Could they bring her home? And what had really happened that night? Near a natural park in the rural area of Cass County, patrol units  came to a stop.

 They began searching, and almost right away, they found something critical. The stolen pickup, the 2002 GMC Sierra taken from the family’s home, was sitting on property owned by the Anderson family, hidden down in a ravine. The way it was positioned, it was clear someone had tried to conceal it. They moved on to the cabin, going room by room, their hearts racing, not knowing what they were about to walk into.

 What they found only made things worse. A firearm, ammunition, and a note believed to be written by Zachary Anderson, where he talked about wanting to harm himself. In the upper corner, there were traces of blood, but the question still hung in the air. Where was Zachary? And more importantly, where was Alaina? Officers stepped back outside and began following a trail that led into the woods near the property.

Deputy William Conner, along with his canine partner, Yankee, started tracking from the spot where the pickup had been found. Yankee picked up a scent almost immediately and pulled Conner toward a nearby swamp. At 4:24 that afternoon, about a quarter mile from the cabin, they found Zachary Anderson.

  He was standing knee-deep in the water, in the middle of the swamp, with cuts on his arms. He didn’t resist when they took him into custody. One of the officers asked  him straight out, “Where’s the girl?” “What girl?” he replied. Investigators read him his rights, and he repeated three times that he didn’t want to talk.

 At that point, they still didn’t know if Alaina was alive. They told him they needed to bring her back to her family. They told him he could help them do that. “I don’t know anything,” he said. For the next several minutes, they kept pressing him, asking again and again where she was. “Is the little girl here in the swamp, or do we need to go somewhere else to find her?” “In the swamp,” he said quietly.

 They asked him to repeat it twice just to be sure they heard him right. Then they asked if he could show them exactly where. He asked for a cigarette, and then he led them. Step by step, he guided them to a specific spot in the swamp. Alaina’s body was found there under the water, hidden beneath debris in the southern part of Wilderness Park.

She had no clothes on. A canine unit later identified another location, about 75 ft away, following a trail from the house. That’s where they found her favorite Frozen blanket. At 6:02 that evening, Sheriff Brian Cruse made the announcement, the Amber Alert could be canceled. This was no longer a missing child case.

 It was now a murder investigation. I just couldn’t sleep Sunday, and I just thought about it. Craig Speldrick is among those living inside the Wilderness Park private estates. It’s where the body of Alaina Ertle was found in a swamp just beyond the Anderson family cabin. And I decided something had to be done.

 Speldrick built a tasteful timber cross for Alaina, a place where others are now purging their grief. And the people here are absolutely offended, you know? They are They’re They’re heartbroken.  What does the pre-K community really Folks like Ray Scholtes and Anna Cash are stopping to pay respects to a child they never knew, but can’t stop thinking about.

 The community here saddens as as if they had lived here. I mean, it doesn’t really matter where you are, what you who you are, where you’re from, but when it you know, when something  happens so close to home. Ray actually recalls seeing Anderson briefly at last Saturday’s annual meeting. Yeah, he came down  to the clubhouse, you know? Um and he was just all muddy and dirty, he must have just come out of the swamp.

Now, it’s a Northwoods community left in mourning over a crime so unthinkable. It’s It’s heartbreaking, that’s all. It’s emotional. It’s extremely emotional. She’ll never forget gotten up there. Weren’t for that  canine team, that suspect’s capture would have at least been delayed if not, you know, wouldn’t have happened.

 Steve Pearson trains police dogs. He says it was Cass County Deputy Bill Conner’s dog, Yankee, that ultimately led authorities to a swampy area in the woods about a quarter mile from the cabin. Pearson trained Yankee roughly 5 years ago. Their ability to smell and  and and and follow that odor is just absolutely remarkable.

 Pearson says because authorities didn’t have an item of clothing for Yankee to go off of, he believes the German Shepherd tracked Anderson’s fear scent. Police say Anderson initially said, “What girl?” when they asked about Alayna. Those officers when they got to that cabin had no idea where to start. They They tried using the helicopter to find you know, people down in in the in the woods and whatnot.

 I have no doubt that he would have gotten away. Investigators determined that she likely died from asphyxiation and had also suffered  blunt force trauma. There was also evidence of sexual assault. 25-year-old Zachary Todd Anderson was charged with multiple counts, including one count of second-degree intentional murder, one count of criminal sexual conduct involving a child under 13, one count of kidnapping with intent to commit a felony, and one count of kidnapping with intent  to cause great bodily harm. His bail was set at

$1 million with conditions, or $2 million without. For the small community of Watkins, it was almost impossible to even begin processing something this horrific. We’re pretty close-knit. People around here. Swapping stories over coffee can take a whole afternoon when you’re in your 80s. Just unbelievable. Even for two friends who’ve seen a lot over the years, these past few days have been too much.

It shouldn’t happen. For a young kid that small and and it  should never happen. I’ve seen her around town. I’d go for a walk, she’d wave, say hi. Just a little girl she was. Alice Lister can hardly find words to describe what all of Watkins is feeling. Been rough. I mean, Watkins has been  through a lot.

 We’ve lost a lot, but we’ve all come together. It’s a family community. A town of a thousand where everyone seems to know everyone and their pain. A tragedy like this is unbelievable. Just something that doesn’t happen here. As these old friends struggle to understand what has happened, their long lives keep teaching them one important lesson.

We will survive. It’s a community that uh has a lot of heartfelt feelings between each other, but we will survive. Candlelight vigils were held across the town as people came together trying to make sense of what had happened and to support the family in any way they could. “I just feel helpless,” one person at the vigil said.

 “Honestly, it feels like the entire state is in shock. A small town in central Minnesota, this isn’t the kind of thing that’s supposed to happen here. It didn’t feel real.” A GoFundMe page was set up to help the family  and the goal, $15,000, was reached in just 15 hours. There are still some people out here tonight.

 It seems as if the entire town came to this church parking lot for a service to honor Alayna. Now, some people were just too stricken with grief to speak to us, but everyone here came together to be surrounded by friends and family, those who knew and loved the sweet 5-year-old. Sounds of Frozen, Alayna’s favorite, came before prayer. Beautiful.

Shy. >> [snorts] >> Like to play. More people than you could count filled the St. Anthony Catholic Church parking  lot. A way to come together to remember a vibrant girl who was never without a smile. Like you just want to be here to support the community and the family and for this little girl who lost her life. It’s just It’s sad.

>>  >> Many wrestle with why this 5-year-old with so much life ahead of her was taken. I just want to know why it What possesses people to do this? >>  >> Parents who have lost a child share in the family’s sorrow. I’m so sorry that this happened to them. I’m so sorry it happened to her. The fact that this was someone Alayna’s family knew and trusted made everything even more disturbing.

 Court records showed that up until then, Zachary Todd Anderson had only a few minor traffic violations on his record. “Nothing that would suggest something like this. We have no information indicating he was a sexual predator or anything like that,” said Sheriff Brian Cruise.  “We don’t know the motive. We don’t understand why this happened or why now.

” One man, John, who grew up with Matt and knew Zachary from the local softball league, remembered him this way. “He seemed like a normal guy. Everyone liked him. He was always smiling. That’s what makes this so hard to accept. People trusted him. He looked like a good person.” But as investigators started digging deeper into Zachary’s past, >>  >> a much more troubling picture began to emerge. Let’s go back to May 2006.

Zachary was 16 years old living with his mother next door to a 31-year-old single mom with two young children. She later told investigators in Wright County that Zachary had been leaving notes on her car windshield. In them, he called her beautiful, left his phone number, and suggested she call him if she wanted him to be her boyfriend.

 She also suspected he had stolen cigarettes from her when she  accidentally left her garage open. By December, his behavior had become even more unsettling and unpredictable. One night, around 1:30 in the morning, the woman was woken up by loud, frantic pounding on her front door. It was Zachary.

 He was standing there in nothing but his underwear demanding that she open the door and sleep with him. At one point, he even tried to force the door open. He ran off as soon as her boyfriend came to the door, but it didn’t end there. In June 2007, while she was upstairs asleep with her children, Zachary removed a window screen on the first floor and broke into the house.

 He grabbed her phone from the living room table and ran. He was charged with theft and first-degree burglary. Later, he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge, third-degree burglary, and was sentenced to community service. He was also ordered to write a letter of apology. A no-contact order was put in place. And she was so afraid of him, she ended up moving away.

Because Zachary Anderson was a juvenile at the time, the incident didn’t make the news or appear on his public record. When the news broke about what he had now been arrested for, the woman said she never could have imagined his behavior would escalate to something like this. “I felt sick. I was shocked and honestly, just devastated,” she said.

 She added that she hoped sharing her experience might encourage other possible victims to come forward. Zachary Todd Anderson was eventually charged with 19 counts, including first-degree intentional murder, first-degree criminal sexual conduct, kidnapping, and abuse of a corpse. He pleaded not guilty to all charges, but as the case moved forward, things took a complicated turn.

 His defense attorney argued that key evidence collected at the scene should be thrown out. Zachary had told officers multiple times that he was invoking his right to remain silent and did not want to answer questions. Yet, the questioning continued. Judge Jana Austad ruled that investigators had improperly interrogated him.

 Because of that, his initial statements could not be used in court. And it didn’t stop there. The fact that he led officers to the location and pointed out the area where Alayna’s body was found, none of that could be used as evidence, either. By that point, he had already invoked his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent.

 Prosecutors, however, pushed back. They argued that Alayna would have been found regardless, even without his help. According to them, law enforcement would have used every available resource, helicopters, canine units, whatever it took. Zachary’s public defender, Scott Collins, also filed a motion to dismiss the charges entirely, claiming there wasn’t enough legal basis to prosecute, especially given that his client’s constitutional rights had been violated.

 The judge denied the defense’s motion to dismiss the 19-count indictment, meaning the charges would stand. At the same time, defense attorneys filed another motion, this one aiming to exclude key details from trial, including how Alayna’s body was discovered,  the clothing and blanket found nearby, and the results of the medical examination.

 Judge Jana Austad rejected that request, as  well. She stated that the evidence clearly showed the discovery of Alayna’s body and her blanket was completely independent of Anderson’s unconstitutional actions, specifically when he led officers to the location where he claimed Alayna might be. The court ruled that certain  statements could not be used in trial.

That included his statement, “I don’t know anything,” as well as what he said in the swamp, and even the fact that he led officers to the area where he claimed she could be found. >>  >> However, other evidence was allowed. That included the clothing and blankets recovered at the scene, the discovery of the body itself, Alayna’s body, all evidence collected during his examination, and all photographs.

 He was scheduled to appear for a pretrial hearing, but soon after, the case took another turn. In the end, Zachary Todd Anderson pleaded guilty to first-degree murder connected to sexual assault involving penetration. The remaining 18 charges were dropped. Immediately after entering his plea, he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

 Our goal was to secure the maximum sentence allowed under Minnesota law, life without release, said Cass County Prosecutor Benjamin Lindstrom, and that’s exactly what this agreement achieved. Alaina’s family was determined to keep her memory and her spirit alive. Just 2 months after her murder, on what would  have been her 6th birthday, October 31st, her mom decided to hold a celebration  in her honor.

 What started as something small quickly grew into something much bigger. They called it sharing Alaina’s love. And at its heart, it was all about the people in their community bringing them together, just like Alaina always did. Today, the Ertl family held a fundraiser called sharing Alaina’s love.  Proceeds went to a family whose daughter is fighting cancer.

 Alexis Bossen was diagnosed with a rare type of bone cancer last September. I’ve been putting on wristbands. I’ve helped do some stuff around for the silent auction, and it’s been really fun. Kayla said it helped her turn the pain into something lighter, whether it was donating toys to a local hospital, or putting together care packages for kids who needed them.

 It was her way of showing, over and over again, who Alaina really was. And just how much joy she brought into the world. At one point, Kayla had told Alaina that sunsets were like someone watching over us from heaven. And after Alaina was gone, she said she started seeing her daughter in those sunsets. Just 1 month before Alaina was taken from this world, a tornado had torn through the community.

In the days that followed, people came together not because they weren’t hurting, but because they were. They picked up what they could save, rebuilt what they could, and in places where the destruction was too much, they planted something new right there among the wreckage. And in a way, the same thing happened after Alaina’s murder.

 Her story is one of unimaginable loss, the kind no community, no family should ever have to endure. Some things can’t be put back together. Some wounds don’t heal. There are questions that may never have answers, and a kind of pain that just becomes part of the landscape. But even after something like this, people showed up for each other.

 They grieved together. They remembered together. Because when we’re faced with the unthinkable, that’s what we do. We gather the pieces. We hold each other a little tighter. And even though we can’t turn back time or undo the storm, we can still find hope in the way we rebuild.