Margaret Maggie Lerche, 34, was killed on January 22, 2024, at the rural Osceola-area home she shared with her husband in the Town of Farmington, Polk County, Wisconsin. In the months before her death she and the couple’s two children had been staying with her father in Iowa while she and her husband, Jared Ler’che, were having marital problems. Her father helped her pack belongings at the Wisconsin residence that afternoon as she prepared to leave; she was expected to return to Iowa that evening but never arrived and could not be reached. He contacted Polk County authorities about 8:45 p.m. requesting a welfare check.

Deputies found blood leading toward the basement and discovered Margaret beneath a blanket. The criminal complaint describes severe head and facial injuries, a cord wrapped tightly around her neck, signs she had been beaten and dragged, and a gunshot wound to the back of the head; later reporting based on court documents noted a .22-caliber rifle near her body. St. Paul authorities told Polk County that Jared had contacted a Minnesota crisis line while driving with the couple’s two children and reported suicidal thoughts.

Prosecutors charged Jared Ler’che with first-degree intentional homicide with a domestic-abuse component. If anyone knew Margaret, her family, or has information about what happened that night, please share what is known with Polk County authorities.