In the quiet early hours of August 5, 2013, the life of 25-year-old Brandon James Horst, a White male, was tragically cut short in his own Saint Paul, Minnesota home. He was discovered by his wife, Heather Horst, who called the police shortly after 1 a.m., claiming she had returned from a shopping trip to find him in their bed with blood coming from his head.
Paramedics pronounced Brandon Horst dead at the scene from a single gunshot wound to the head.
The initial investigation into what appeared to be a home invasion quickly shifted focus as details emerged about a conspiracy orchestrated by those closest to him. Authorities arrested Brandon's 24-year-old wife, Heather Leanne Horst, and her 25-year-old friend, Aaron William Allen. The motive behind the killing was a scheme to collect on Brandon's life insurance policies, which totaled $480,000 and listed Heather as the sole beneficiary. Witnesses reported hearing Heather tell Allen that the only way she could be free from her husband, whom she claimed was abusive, was if he were dead.
The investigation revealed that Heather Horst had manipulated Allen into carrying out the murder. Allen, who was engaged to Brandon's stepsister, was led to believe that Brandon was abusing his wife, causing her to have miscarriages, a claim that was later proven to be false. On the night of the murder, Heather left a gun for Allen on the dining room table and then went on a shopping trip with Brandon's stepsister to create an alibi. After Allen shot Brandon as he slept, Heather picked him up and helped him dispose of the murder weapon in a nearby park.
Aaron Allen eventually pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and agreed to testify against Heather Horst. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison. Heather Horst was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
