On November 1st 2024 many were woken up by the blaring sound of an amber alert that authorities issued. In the town of Brainerd, Minnesota, a man is facing charges that shocked Minnesotans. 

35 year old Chad Aanerud went to his alleged girlfriend’s house where 33 year old Nikkole Dobson and her children lived on Halloween night and made inappropriate demands of her. Dobson is pregnant. She refused Aanerud’s requests, and he then threatened to shoot her four children ranging from ages 3-14. Dobson gave in to his demands.

Shortly after, Aanerud was seen dumping gasoline on a property nearby and grabbing firearms. Dobson woke up her children and told them to run to Lyle Maske’s house who lived nearby. Lyle Maske went to Dobson’s home while Lyle Maske’s wife stayed with the four children. When Maske got there to confront Aanerud for his erratic behavior, he was shot to  death.

After Maske’s death, Aanerud went into the house and forced Dobson into his car. He then drove to the Maske house where the four scared children were hiding and forced them into the vehicle at gunpoint. he even let off a “warning shot” to ensure the children knew he was serious. Aanerud then started to flee south.

Police responded to a call early in the morning about Maske being unresponsive in the driveway of the Dobson property. When they got there, not only did they find Lyle Maske dead, but they also found the home on the property in flames; the house was unrecognizable. It was unclear if the fire started before or after Maske was shot.

An amber alert was sent out for the Dobson family at around 7:20 AM and the vehicle was found along with 13 firearms near Little Falls, MN when someone recognized the car that was mentioned in the amber alert.

Officers say that they are “very pleased to see how well the amber alert worked, and things could have gotten worse if things had gone differently.”

The children were found unharmed although very traumatized. The Mom had a couple of injuries due to her assault. Aanerud was arrested immediately and officers said he “smelt strong of gasoline.”

For now, the Dobson family is getting the proper care that is needed. For Lyle Maske, he is being seen as a hero by many. Aanerud has been charged with two counts of second degree murder, one count of first degree sexual conduct, five counts of kidnapping, two counts of second degree assault, one count of first degree arson and one count of theft.

The timeline of this case is still being pieced together.