Burned Body Found in Lake Minnetonka After Boathouse Fire

Oct 16

South Lake Minnetonka Police are investigating after a body was discovered in the water near a burned boathouse in Shorewood.

According to a search warrant affidavit, police were called around 1:52 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 14 to the 4500 block of Enchanted Point after a 911 caller reported a boathouse on fire and seeing what appeared to be a burned body in the water.

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Officers arrived to find a smoldering dock with signs of an accelerant being used nearby and a body that appeared badly burned, with a fractured leg. The body had partially sunk through the burned dock into Lake Minnetonka, the warrant documents said.

Investigators found a red 2015 Toyota Tacoma at the property, which is registered to a 77-year-old man and a 45-year-old man. The house was locked when officers checked the residence and authorities requested a warrant to search the home, truck and any other vehicles on the property for evidence that could explain how the person died or whether a crime occurred.

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A detective for the South Lake Minnetonka Police Department wrote in the application that investigators were seeking to locate items possibly used to start the fire and any other evidence that could determine the person’s cause of death. A judge approved the search warrant later that afternoon.

Officers seized a dog, two laptops, three cell phones, miscellaneous paperwork including what appeared to be a note and a will and an unknown vehicle from the property.

Authorities have not yet publicly identified the deceased person or released additional details about the cause of death.

UPDATE | Friday, Oct. 17

The South Lake Minnetonka Police Department says the medical examiner found the person's preliminary cause of death to be suicide. The case is still active and no further details have been released yet.

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