Craig Hameister, Rochester, Minnesota man beats ex girlfriend, Melissa Nicole Hunt to death amid child custody dispute. Wanted man had sought to evade capture before eventual arrest.
A Minnesota man is accused of beating to death his ex girlfriend amid a child custody dispute.
Craig Alan Hameister, 44, following his arrest on Wednesday, June 19th, faced two counts of second-degree murder in the slaying of Rochester woman, Melissa Nicole Hunt, 36 according to a release from the Wabasha County Sheriff’s Office.
A criminal complaint stated the victim, Melissa Hunt, a mother of two daughters, pulling into a driveway in Kellog with injuries to her face, including missing teeth and a portion of her jaw, the Minnesota Star Tribune reported.
Ex girlfriend died after suffering gunshot wound to the face
Wabasha County deputies responded, with the battered woman telling them that Craig Hameister had assaulted her with a stick at a nearby boat launch.
The assaulted woman was able to describe Hameister’s vehicle, a white pickup truck, along with telling police where he lived.
Emergency responders took her to a hospital, only to die a few hours later. An autopsy described the medical examiner stating that there was gunshot residue in the wounds to Hunt’s face.
Police launched a search for Hameister. They found no evidence of a crime at the boat launch, other than an unspent 9mm round. Respondents found the wanted man’s truck outside Chatfield, including a live 9mm round on the floor board.
A witness told police that Hameister had arrived earlier and appeared ‘very frantic.’ He told the residents ‘something bad happened’ before leaving the truck behind and heading off on a motorcycle, according to KSTP.
Police later found Hameister at a trailer park in Chatfield, Olmsted County, where he climbed a tree to escape police and engaged in an hours-long standoff before he was taken into custody.
Craig Hameister, Minnesota man beats ex girlfriend to death amid unpaid child support
Investigators found a 9mm handgun at the base of the tree. Investigators found gunshot residue in nearby Hunt’s wounds.
Hameister was charged with two counts of second-degree murder — one count with intent, one count without intent — and one count of manslaughter. He is being held on $2 million bond.
According to court records, Hameister was ordered to pay Hunt $645 per month in child support and nearly $3,000 in past due child support.
A GoFundme for Melissa’s funeral and memorial has since raised more than $11,300.
More than 12 million people just in the U.S. are affected by domestic violence every year, according to the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
