Jeremy Koch, Dawson County, Nebraska dad stabs wife, Bailey Koch to death along with their 2 sons, just three days after release from mental health hospital. Suspected murder-suicide happened on the day the eldest son was set to graduate from high school.
A Nebraska father is reported to have stabbed his wife, and their two teen sons to death before then turning the murder weapon on himself on the same day his oldest son’s high school graduation. The incident comes just three days after he was released from a mental health hospital.
Jeremy Koch, 42, killed his 41-year-old wife, Bailey, and sons Hudson, 18, and Asher, 16, in a stabbing spree Saturday before taking his own life in a rural part of Dawson County, according to the Nebraska State Patrol.
Dawson County murder suicide: Nebraska dad long time struggle with mental health
The apparent murder-suicide was discovered by Bailey’s parents around 9:45 a.m. All four family members suffered from fatal knife wounds, police said.
‘I found our two grandsons, Hudson 18, and Asher 16, and our daughter Bailey, and our son-in-law Jeremy, dead laying in their beds,’ Lane and Peggy Kugler, the father and mother of Bailey and grandparents of the two boys, said in a Facebook post, according to News Channel Nebraska.
‘What I saw will haunt me the rest of my life.’
The tragedy comes amid Jeremy’s longtime struggle with depression and suicidal thoughts, which was chronicled by Bailey, a teacher, on a dedicated Facebook page.
She wrote on the ‘Anchoring Hope for Mental Health’ page Wednesday that Jeremy had wrapped up a five-day stint receiving mental health care at a hospital with a photo of the couple smiling in a car.
‘What a difference five days, some hydration and nutrition, med adjustments, therapies, and a safety plan can make!!!’ Bailey Koch wrote.
‘Thank you for praying and for your unwavering support as I take Hottie Hubby HOME in time for our son’s high school graduation! We still need lots of prayers as we try and carry on with life and find our new ‘normal.’’
Jeremy Koch had tried and failed to commit suicide in the past
Still, in the days leading up to the suspected murder-suicide, the father of two continued to struggle, according to his wife’s recent social media posts.
Hudson was set to receive his diploma at Cozad High School’s graduation — which went on without the teen Saturday afternoon, just hours after the family’s slaughter.
‘Cozad Schools was made aware of a tragic situation that will deeply affect our Cozad community,’ the school district wrote. ‘Our thoughts are with all those impacted during this incredibly difficult time.’
Bailey Koch was remembered as a ‘passionate educator, caring colleague and bright presence in the school community,‘ by Holdrege Public Schools, where she worked, according to NTV.
Jeremy and Bailey were high school sweethearts and were together for at least 25 years, according to the Facebook page.
In a since-deleted GoFundMe page, in a ‘description about,’ seen by News Channel Nebraska, Bailey wrote that her husband had been diagnosed with ‘severe depression’ in 2009 and that his condition worsened in 2024. She added that in March, she awoke to find her husband standing over her with a knife and got him to agree to treatment and electroconvulsive therapy.
Floundering mental health treatment and financial despair
In a Facebook update on Thursday, May 8, Bailey wrote that her husband had been accepted into a mental health facility and that he ‘understands it’s because we love him so much.’
Bailey went on to post that her husband had survived numerous suicide attempts over the years, including a car crash that nearly killed him.
‘He was left with a leg broken in four places, punctured lung, fractured pancreas, complete colon reconstruction, brain bleed, and…still depression,’ she wrote. ‘When he awoke, I was in awe and relieved. He was destroyed his attempt hadn’t worked.’
Then her husband went some seven years ‘without experiencing dark thoughts.’ However, his mental health struggles exacerbated in July and he was unable to work which meant the landscaping business floundered and they were living on her teaching salary, she wrote, with Bailey tapped out of her retirement funds and having set up a recent GoFundme fundraiser.
‘In March, just a couple months ago, I woke to Jeremy shaking me awake saying, ‘Something is wrong,” Bailey Koch wrote. ‘He was standing over my bed with a knife ready to end his life. I was able to talk him down and into accepting help.’
Bailey posted an update on Thursday saying while her husband was home, he was not reacting well to his new medications. Nevertheless she expressed having ‘hope’ after a hospital about an hour away from their home was offering a different treatment. She wrote how they were going to the hospital on Friday to see if they would qualify.
Just two days later, Bailey, her two sons along with her high school sweetheart would be dead…
