A Wisconsin man will be charged with murder after his father’s dismembered remains were found in woods several miles from their home.
Chandler Michael Halderson, 23, had already been arrested for providing false information after he reported both his parents missing last week.
On Monday, the Dane County Sheriff’s Office said the Windsor resident will be further charged with first-degree intentional homicide, mutilating a corpse and hiding a corpse.
Detectives discovered the torso of Bart Halderson, 50, late last week on a rural property in Cottage Grove, according to a probable cause affidavit.
He had been shot multiple times before his body was dismembered, the Wisconsin State Journal reported.
Chandler’s mother, Krista Halderson, 53, was still missing Wednesday.
(Dane County Sheriff’s Office)
An investigation was launched after Chandler called 911 on July 7 to report his parents missing.
Chandler told cops he’d last seen them on July 1 when they left home to spend the holiday weekend at their cabin in White Lake with another couple he did not know, the Dane County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
Chandler, who lives at his parents’ home, said they had not returned as expected.
He also told detectives that his mother had sent him a text message on July 4 to say they had arrived safely and would be attending a holiday parade that day, according to the probable cause affidavit.
Investigators found no sign of anyone staying at the cabin recently and learned there hadn’t even been a parade in White Lake.
That discovery led to Chandler’s arrest last Thursday on charges of providing false information, a day after he reported his parents missing.
Detectives then talked to a witness who had seen Chandler on July 5 at an acquaintance’s home in Cottage Grove, a town around 10 miles from Windsor.
The witness spotted him “reversing his vehicle with the rear hatch open in a field near a wooded area,” the affidavit states.
During a search of the area, deputies found Bart Halderson’s dismembered torso.
Formal charges against Chandler are expected to be filed Thursday.
“At this point, we have an extremely complex investigation,” District Attorney William Brown said, according to the State Journal. “We have a defendant who had six days to hide evidence of his crime and lied to police in the course of this missing persons investigation, which he instigated.”
“He has lied dozens of times in the course of this investigation,” Brown continued. “He is now seen leaving the area in which the dismembered remains of his father were found with gunshot wounds.”
Chandler is being held in lieu of $10,000 cash bail.
Dane County Sheriff Kalvin Barrett said at a news conference that investigators are “optimistic” about finding Krista Halderson.
She is described as white, with red hair and blue eyes, 5 feet, 3 inches tall, and weighing around 155 pounds.
Shocking case. How can they be “optimistic” about finding his mother – or at least finding her alive?