Inset: Gordon Laakso (St. Croix County Jail). Background: Home in New Richmond, Wisconsin, where Laakso allegedly killed his wife (WEAU).
Authorities in Wisconsin arrested a 70-year-old man after he allegedly killed his wife before disposing of her body in a cornfield.
Gordon Charles Laakso stands accused of first-degree intentional homicide, domestic abuse by strangulation and suffocation and hiding a corpse in the death of his wife, 68-year-old Mary Laakso in New Richmond, located in western Wisconsin. The New Richmond Police Department said in a press release that officers received a call around 1:45 p.m. on Sunday about a possible domestic disturbance at the Laakso home. The 911 caller said Gordon Laakso made concerning statements earlier in the day that he may have harmed his wife.
More from Law&Crime: Woman who allegedly killed boyfriend’s 6-year-old girl, stuffed remains ‘inside a large plastic bucket,’ used wagon to drop off body in biological mother’s front yard handed Supreme Court loss
Cops went to the home in the 1300 block of Bluff Border Road and found Gordon Laakso but not his wife. They also could not reach her by phone. A little more than two hours later, officers found Mary Laakso’s body on the edge of a cornfield in a rural area of Polk County, which is north of New Richmond.
A criminal complaint obtained by Eau Claire NBC affiliate WEAU said when cops made initial contact with the suspect, he claimed his wife “rambled” at him for seven hours and then started hitting him. He said things got out of hand but didn’t know what else to say to cops, according to the affidavit.
Gordon Laakso additionally stated he knew his wife was dead and instead of taking her to the hospital he panicked and dumped her body. Then, he reportedly began packing a suitcase and told cops he was going with them. During a search of the home, cops allegedly found bloody gloves and several firearms.
When detectives asked him where she was, he allegedly responded, “Oh, you didn’t find her?” Asked to clarify, he reportedly said “she’s dead.”
Officers took the defendant to the St. Croix County Jail where he remains on a $1 million bond.
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
