Identities Of Victims From Shooting Spree In Chippewa County Released

The Chippewa County Sheriff’s Office has identified the man who shot and killed four people in the Town of Lafayette and Village of Lake Hallie.

Sheriff Jim Kowalczyk says 33-year-old Ritchie German Jr. killed his mother, brother and nephew before driving 9 miles and killing 24-year-old Laile Vang.

At a Tuesday press conference held in the Chippewa County Courthouse, Kowalczyk said German Jr. killed his 66-year-old mother, Bridget German; 32-year-old brother, Douglas German; and his 8-year-old nephew, Calvin Harris, at 16964 54th Ave. in the Town of Lafayette. The sheriff said each of those victims had a single gunshot wound to the head. Kowalczyk said investigators are still working to determine exactly when those murders happened. But Kowalczyk said Bridget German’s employer called her home when she didn’t show up for work.

“Saturday morning Ritchie German (Jr.) calls the grocery store and speaks to somebody at the store and relates to them that, ‘My mother is sick and she’s in the hospital,’” said Kowalczyk.

Kowalczyk said he suspects the family members were already dead at that point.

Just before 10:30 p.m. Sunday the Lake Hallie Police Department received reports of shots fired at 13578 45th Ave. Kowalczyk said when officers arrived, they found 24-year-old Laile Vang dead of an apparent shotgun wound along with Ritchie German Jr., who the sheriff said took his own life.

Vang’s parents were also shot but survived the incident. Chippewa County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Chad Holum said the Vangs were both shot in the hands, apparently shielding themselves when German Jr. raised the shotgun to fire. Holum said both have had their arms amputated as a result of their injuries.

Kowalczyk said investigators still don’t have a motive and are working to find out where German Jr. was residing, since it appeared he only stayed with his mother in the Town of Lafayette “off and on.”

But Kowalczyk said the incidents in Chippewa County bear some resemblance to the kidnapping of Barron teenager Jayme Closs and the murder of her parents last November.

“If you think back of the incident up in Barron County involving the Closs family, very similar in nature as to what happened down in Hallie, could have been the motive or mode of operation in regards of what could have happened down there if he did not chose to shoot the Vang girl,” Kowalczyk said.

Kowalczyk said those similarities included the use of a shotgun to blast open the Lake Hallie home’s door open. Holum also said German Jr. left his car running on the street while walking up to the home with the shotgun in hand.

“There is some items we found in the vehicle, the way the vehicle was left and running, that we’re still working on and analyzing that leads us to believe it’s similar,” Holum said.

Holum would not elaborate on what was found in the car German Jr. was driving.

Kowalczyk did confirm media reports German Jr. had sent text messages to Laile Vang prior to her death. Holum said they were sexual in nature.

Kowalczyk said family members described German Jr. as a loner who didn’t have any friends and mostly kept to himself. Holum said deputies were called to his mother’s home in the Town of Lafayette for a domestic disturbance in 2004.

“There’s evidence he did have issues, he did arm himself, and he did point the gun in the direction of his brothers and threaten them if they didn’t follow his orders bad things would happen,” Kowalczyk said.

Kowalczyk said German Jr. was arrested and booked at the Chippewa County Jail and entered a plea deal that led to his charges being reduced to disorderly conduct. The sheriff said German Jr. was sentenced to probation and hadn’t had any other contact with law enforcement other than a traffic violation.