A 47-year-old man has been charged with two counts of second-degree murder after his sister’s boyfriend was allegedly shot dead at their shared home in Monticello, Minnesota, following a dispute over a cat.
Steven Ralph Stahlberg is accused of killing Daniel Lawrence Ferdelman, 57, who was found dead in bed after his girlfriend returned from work and called emergency services at about 7.27am on 3 September.
Monticello murder investigation
According to the criminal complaint filed in Wright County District Court, Stahlberg, Ferdelman and the woman all lived at the property. The dispute began after Stahlberg took the household’s new cat into his bedroom and barricaded himself inside.
Ferdelman reportedly asked him to bring the animal out. Stahlberg eventually did so, but the two men allegedly pushed each other before Stahlberg took the cat back into his room and shut himself in again.
The complaint says Ferdelman later warned his girlfriend that someone could be hurt if Stahlberg pushed or struck him again. She told investigators that Ferdelman called her a second time between 2am and 3am to say Stahlberg had entered his room and the pair had become involved in another physical confrontation.
Investigators believe Stahlberg then left the property in a Toyota Tundra. Nearby surveillance footage is said to show a man getting into a pickup truck at about 1.18am, while the vehicle was no longer at the home when deputies arrived.
Concerned that Stahlberg might also travel to their father’s home in Remer, the woman told investigators she feared further violence. Wright County deputies, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office and Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agents joined the search, according to reports.
Deputies found the Toyota in Remer at about 9.45am and arrested Stahlberg. A shotgun was discovered on the front passenger-side floor, concealed beneath a windscreen sunshade. The weapon contained shells loaded with rifled slugs and birdshot.
A medical examiner determined that Ferdelman died from a shotgun wound to the chest. The injury severely damaged his right lung and severed his aorta, while fragments consistent with a plastic wad and a slug were recovered from his body.
Stahlberg remains accused and has not been convicted. It was not immediately clear whether he had entered a plea or appointed a lawyer. The investigation remains ongoing.
