Murder of Alayna Ertl

Zachary Todd Anderson Anderson was born on . In May 2006, Anderson (then aged ) lived in a townhouse with his mother in Monticello, Minnesota. According to court documents released by Wright County in 2016, in the summer of 2006, one of Anderson's neighbors reported to authorities that he was leaving love notes on her car. They were stated to include compliments on the woman's appearance and a phone number to call if she was interested in dating him. In December, court documents describe Anderson going to the neighbor's home and demanding the woman have sex with him, and after being repeatedly denied, he fled once the woman's boyfriend went to the door. In June 2007, Anderson broke into the woman's home by removing a window screen and then stole the woman's cell phone. As a result, he was charged with first-degree burglary and theft, and later pled guilty to third-degree burglary with a sentence of mandatory community service. According to a cousin of Matt Ertl — Alayna's father — Anderson had been friends with the Ertl family for years before the murder. She described Anderson as playing on Matt's softball team every Friday and spending the night at the Ertl residence regularly. Anderson and Matt also worked together at the company Vannguard Utility Partners. Their job was to find and mark underground utility lines. == Disappearance and investigation ==

On August 19, 2016, Anderson played softball with Matt in the evening. The two later returned to the Ertl residence where they spoke until 4a.m. on August 20, after which Matt went to bed. At 2a.m., Alayna was put to bed by her mother, Kayla Ertl. At 8a.m., both parents discovered that Alayna, Anderson, and Matt's 2002 GMC Sierra were missing. The parents filed a missing persons report with the Meeker County Sheriff's office two hours later. Following the report, the sheriff's office canvassed the Watkins area without success. The BCA then joined the investigation, canvassed a larger area, and reviewed security camera footage from local businesses, none of which bore progress. An amber alert was issued for Alayna at 1:30p.m. While searching, authorities traced the Sierra by tracking a cell phone that Matt left inside it. It was determined that Anderson was in Todd County from 6:30a.m. until 9a.m., at which point the cell phone was turned off. Anderson was also spotted at a convenience store in Browerville at 8:30a.m., seemingly alone. According to court documents, at roughly 2p.m. the Cass County Sheriff's office received a tip from a caller claiming to be Anderson's father. They reported that Anderson asked to use their family's cabin in Motley, and then permitted authorities to search the area. Two pairs of officers responded. One pair went to the cabin and found the Sierra in a nearby ravine, court documents alleging that Anderson parked it there to conceal it. When they searched the cabin, they found a 20-gauge shotgun, appropriate ammunition, and a suicide note. The other pair alongside a K-9 followed footsteps outside the cabin that led into the woods. At 4:30p.m. Anderson was found standing knee-deep in a swamp with a cut on his left wrist. He was unarmed and did not resist arrest. When asked where Alayna was, he indicated he did not know and that he did not want to talk. When pressured further, he admitted that Alayna was in the swamp and led officers to her body at 6:02p.m. Alayna's body was found unclothed and submerged in water roughly away from Watkins. She was pronounced dead on scene, and Anderson was charged and booked into Crow Wing County jail. Alayna's autopsy revealed her cause of death was strangulation and blunt force trauma with evidence of sexual assault. == Criminal proceedings ==

On October 25, 2017, Anderson was indicted by a grand jury on 19 charges including first and second-degree murder, first and second-degree criminal sexual conduct, interference with a dead body, kidnapping, and motor vehicle theft. Anderson pled not guilty. On March 2, 2018, Anderson pled guilty to one count of first-degree murder while committing criminal sexual conduct with the remaining counts dismissed. Anderson was then sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole, the minimum sentence for the crime in Minnesota. As part of the guilty plea, Anderson was asked questions in court about the crime, where he admitted to kidnapping Alayna, sexually assaulting her, and then "leaving her for dead in Cass County". Victim impact statements from Alayna's family were read the same day. Lindstrom commented that he was surprised Anderson took the plea since there was no incentive to do so, claiming that if the case went to jury trial the result would have been the same. == Aftermath ==

A GoFundMe page was launched on August 21, 2016, to raise money for Alayna's family to help with memorial expenses. The goal was set at $10,000. Roughly $14,000 was raised in eight hours, and it would exceed $40,000 two days later. On August 23, 2016, community members placed angel figurines and flowers in front of the Ertl residence. On the same day, a candle-lit vigil was held with hundreds of attendees at the St. Anthony Church of Watkins. Alayna was buried at St. Anthony on August 26 after a two-day visitation period at the Ertl Funeral Home. On September 10, 2023, as part of a two-year collaboration between various businesses, a life-size statue of Alayna Ertl was erected in McCarthy Park in Watkins. Sharing Alayna Ertl's Love charity On the Halloween of the same year of Alayna's disappearance, Kayla Ertl hosted a public event that doubled as a celebration of Alayna's birthday. This event would later be repeated annually and inspire the creation of the "Sharing Alayna Ertl's Love" charity. The charity collects donations during the annual Halloween party, typically in the form of toys or money, and then distributes them throughout the year to sick children and families in need. The charity has reportedly donated to the St. Cloud Hospital and a Litchfield family who had experienced a loss near the time of the donation. The Halloween party is funded through a separate memorial all-terrain vehicle run event that is based out of a tavern in Forest City. == References ==