BRAINERD — A 35-year-old Brainerd man accused of shooting another man to death and then kidnapping a pregnant woman and her children was arraigned Monday in Crow Wing County District Court.

Contributed / Crow Wing County Jail

Chad Aaron Aanerud was charged with multiple felonies, including unintentional but not premeditated second-degree murder; unintentional second-degree murder during the commission of a felony; first-degree criminal sexual conduct involving penetration under fear of great bodily harm; five counts of kidnapping in furtherance of a felony or escape; first degree arson; two charges of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon; and theft.

Aanerud appeared before Crow Wing County District Court Judge Charles Halverson on Monday, Nov. 4, on the charges and was appointed a public defender. The case was assigned to Crow Wing County District Court Judge Kristine DeMay.

Crow Wing Deputy District Attorney Janine LePage told Halverson that the state would seek an unconditional $3 million bond and that no conditional bond would be assigned. He also requested the court to issue a domestic violence-no-contact order against Aanerud.

LePage told the court that Aanerud was released on probation and parole in two other cases.

When asked if he wanted to comment on the conditions of his release, Aanerud asked how he could be charged with kidnapping when he claimed the children were his.

Halverson set bond at $3 million with no strings attached. When Halverson asked about the domestic violence-no-contact order, LePage stated that moments earlier, Aanerud had falsely claimed the children were his and that he wanted the order implemented to protect them and their mother.

Halverson said a domestic violence-no-contact order will be issued if the court receives accurate information about the names and addresses of people who should be included in the order.

Aanerud is expected back in Crow Wing County District Court on Nov. 12.

According to the criminal complaint, at 1:50 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 1, law enforcement received a 911 call reporting that Aanerud had shot and killed Lyle Maske.

Law enforcement was directed to a home in the 15000 block of Loerch Road where Maske’s body was found. Maske’s body was found in the driveway of a residence east of his home on Loerch Road.

There was a large amount of blood on the mask’s neck and chest, and he was not breathing. Rifle casings were found on the ground near his body and he appeared to have apparent gunshot wounds.

Despite life-saving measures, Maske was pronounced dead at 02.19 in the morning.

While officers were taking life-saving measures, they observed the main residence in the 15000 block of Loerch Road engulfed in flames. The house burned to ashes.

Nikkole Dobson and her four young children lived at 15000 Loerch Road, in a building next to the main residence on the burned property.

A woman who lived with Maske and her husband told law enforcement that shortly before the shooting, Dobson’s four young children showed up at Maske’s home and reported that Aanerud had “robbed grandpa and grandma’s house,” meaning the residence in the 15000 block of Loerch Road.

The woman stated that she and Maske decided to go to the address in the 15000 block of Loerch Road, just a short distance from Maske’s property, to see what was going on. He and Mask discussed bringing a firearm with them; however, Maske believed this could make the situation worse and chose not to bring a firearm.

The woman told officers she took Mask to the property at 15000 Loerch Road and dropped him off at the end of the driveway. He later returned to Maske’s home to be with Dobson’s children.

He said about 10 minutes after dropping Maske off at a neighboring property, Aanerud arrived at Maske’s house in a white van, with Dobson in the front seat of the vehicle.

Aanerud was carrying a rifle and asked the two women to hand over the children. Aanerud forced his way into the house, demanded his “children” and threatened to kill them while firing one or more shots.

Aanerud then forced Dobson and her four young children into the vehicle at gunpoint and left the area at a high rate of speed.

Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch

Shortly after Aanerud left, the woman who lived with Maske went to the property in the 15000 block of Loerch Road and found Maske on the ground, lying on his right side with a large amount of blood on his chin and chest. She believed he was dead and called 911.

An Amber Alert was issued at 7:20 Friday morning after a significant search for the identified van and the van Aanerud was driving was located near Little Falls. Aanerud was arrested by law enforcement, who said he smelled strongly of gasoline or another flammable substance when he was removed from the van.

Dobson and four young children were found in the van.

Dobson had physical injuries to his face, neck and upper chest consistent with being physically assaulted. The children were found in the back of the minibus with 13 stolen firearms.

Law enforcement took statements from Dobson and the minor children.

Information obtained from Dobson and the children showed that Aanerud began arguing with Dobson after 9 p.m. on October 31 on the porch of the building where Dobson and his children resided, 50 meters away from the property owner’s residence. The property owner and his wife were not at home at that time.

Aanerud was demanding sex from Dobson but he refused. Aanerud entered the residence and retrieved a .45-caliber handgun, returned to the porch and told Dobson that he would shoot her children if she did not have sex with him. Dobson complied, and in the process Aanerud sexually assaulted her.

Shortly thereafter, Dobson observed Aanerud emptying buckets full of gasoline or diesel into the property owner’s home and taking firearms from the home.

Dobson then woke his children and told them to run to Mask’s house, which they did.

Maske then pulled up to the driveway where a confrontation took place between Aanerud and Maske. Dobson said he heard a gunshot and saw Mask on the ground. The criminal complaint stated that Aanerud shot Lyle Maske with a rifle.

“Look (expletive), I told you, ‘Shut up,'” Aanerud said after shooting Mask, according to the criminal complaint. Aanerud then told Dobson to sit in the front seat of the van and threatened to kill him if he did not sit down.

Tim Speier / Brainerd Dispatch

Aanerud then went to Maske’s house, where he demanded the four young children and fired at least one shot into Maske’s house or home. After getting into the minibus, Aanerud walked away, and shortly after leaving Maske’s house, Aanerud took the 14-year-old’s mobile phone and threw it out of the minibus.

In his statement to law enforcement after his arrest, Aanerud said he accidentally shot Maske with a rifle belonging to the property owner when Maske was “poking his nose” where it didn’t belong, and that he confronted him for carrying firearms. outside the property owner’s residence.

Aanerud also admitted that he deliberately filled the property owner’s house with diesel fuel and set it on fire. Aanerud claimed that the property owner’s wife asked him to “steal” and then burn down the house for the insurance money. However, property owners stated that their homes were not insured.

Aanerud also admitted that after shooting Maske, he went with Dobson to the residence in the 14000 block of Loerch Road, picked up four young children, and left the area after killing Maske.

Aanerud initially denied firing any projectiles at the residence in the 14000 block of Loerch Road, but later admitted to firing a projectile outside the residence.

Aanerud stated that the firearm used to kill Maske was still in the vehicle when it was seized by law enforcement, along with several other firearms.

On Monday, a family friend of the Dobson family reached the Dispatch to say that Dobson and her children lost nearly everything in the fire.

Chelsey Kay said she opened a GoFundMe account after the incident.

Helping Dobson, his children, and the property owners

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Kay said Dobson had to be hospitalized following the incident and Dobson, who was eight months pregnant, was told the baby was in good condition.

Kay also said a GoFundMe has been started to help the Lyle family

Mask will help cover funeral expenses

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You can find the GoFundMe set up for Dobson and his family at:

minikurl.com/2s4j877s

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You can find the GoFundMe set up for the masks at:

minikurl.com/3vnb2sjn

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Aanerud’s criminal history includes several convictions for felonies, including third-degree criminal sexual conduct, improperly registering as a predatory offender, threats of violence, burglary, and several cases of third-degree larceny.

Most recently, Aanerud was charged July 26 in Crow Wing County District Court with aggravated threats of violence and gross misdemeanor domestic assault after he allegedly threatened a family member and another person with a knife. He also threatened to burn down the family member’s house and vehicles.

According to the criminal complaint filed in that case, the victims said Aanerud, a Crow Wing County sheriff’s deputy, threatened to slit their throats with a knife and told them he was “going to do meth again” during the fight.

The defense hearing in this case will be held on November 14.

In 2008, Aanerud was charged with third-degree criminal sexual conduct against a 15-year-old victim in Brainerd. In 2011, the court decided to postpone the sentence, and he was sentenced to 150 days in prison and 15 years of supervised release. In this case, he violated probation twice, in 2011 and 2012. In 2013, he was sentenced to 36 months in prison with 10 years parole.

In 2018, he was convicted in Crow Wing County District Court of knowingly violating registration requirements or providing false information as a predatory felon and sentenced to 31 months in prison.

In 2010, Aanerud was charged in Crow Wing County District Court with felony burglary and third-degree felony larceny. In 2012, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison, which was suspended for 5 years of supervised release.

For a 2010 third-degree felony burglary conviction in Crow Wing County, Aanerud was initially given a suspended sentence, but was sentenced to 21 months in prison in 2013 after twice violating the terms of his probation.

Aanerud faced a third charge for third-degree felony burglary in Crow Wing County in 2010; On that charge, he was sentenced to one year and one day in prison after violating the terms of his probation. This sentence was executed concurrently with the previous sentence.

In 2021, Aanerud was charged in Aitkin County District Court with felony threats of violence. In 2022, he was sentenced to 29 months in prison and sentenced by the court to 180 days in prison and five years of supervised probation.

In this case, Aanerud was accused of calling and sending threatening messages to his ex-girlfriend and her mother. The threats included Aanerud telling his ex-girlfriend that he would come and get her, that he would watch her every move and that he would not stop calling and texting her and her mother. According to the criminal complaint, when an Aitkin Police officer told Aanerud to stop, Aanerud responded, “That’s not going to happen.”