Plymouth man charged in grandmother's death

July 11, 2020 at 11:02PM

A mentally ill man has been charged with fatally beating his grandmother and seriously injuring his mother and sister on Wednesday in Maple Grove.

David R. Ekers, 34, of Plymouth, is charged with intentional second-degree murder in the bludgeoning death of his grandmother. He also faces two counts of attempted second-degree murder in the assault of his mother and sister, according to the Hennepin County Attorney's Office. He remains jailed in lieu of $1.5 million bail, with his next court appearance set for Aug. 4.

According to the charges, Maple Grove police responded to a call from Ekers' father, who told them his son had severely injured members of his family. Police found Ekers' grandmother, mother and sister with serious head wounds.

Ekers' father told police that he and his son were downstairs working when Ekers went upstairs. The father heard his wife scream, "David, no," ran upstairs and saw Ekers holding a wrench that he then dropped, the criminal complaint said. In an interview with police, Ekers admitted to trying to kill his grandmother, mother and sister. He said he didn't harm his father because he viewed him as an ally. He also admitted to planning the murder of the three victims an hour before the attacks. Charges say Ekers told police that he believed the three victims wanted him to return to the hospital or start taking his medication again.

Ekers' grandmother suffered skull fractures and internal bleeding and was removed from life support Thursday. His mother and sister remain hospitalized in critical condition.

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