Here's another one. http://www.duluthsuperior.com/mld/duluthsuperior/news/breaking_news/10266609.htm
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Posted on Wed, Nov. 24, 2004
Sheriffs probe link between hunter deaths, unsolved murder
ROBERT IMRIE
Associated Press
HAYWARD, Wis. - Investigators were probing a possible link between the man suspected of killing six deer hunters in northern Wisconsin this week and the unsolved murder of a hunter three years ago.
Clark County Sheriff Louis Rosandich said Wednesday his department immediately notified Sawyer County officials after learning the man suspected in a shooting rampage there Sunday was similar to the description of a person of interest in the 2001 death in his county.
"We're hoping that the information they gain may help us in solving our case," Rosandich said. "It does certainly perk our interest, but it is too premature to make any determination as to a link to the Clark County incident of 2001."
Jim Southworth, 37, of Medford, was shot to death Nov. 23, 2001, as he hunted alone on family land 10 miles east of Neillsville. Investigators turned up a few leads initially but soon hit a dead end, Rosandich said.
State Department of Natural Resources officials on Wednesday were tracing deer tags from 2001 to see whether Chai Vang, the suspect in Sunday's shootings, reported bagging any deer in Clark County in 2001.
DNR records show Vang had a Wisconsin hunting license in 2001, said Mike Bartz, warden for the state's northern region.
Vang, 36, of St. Paul, Minn., is being held on $2.5 million bond after six hunters were shot to death and two injured Sunday. The state attorney general said charges were expected Monday at the earliest.
Killed were Robert Crotteau, 42; his son Joey Crotteau, 20; Al Laski, 43; Mark Roidt, 28; Jessica Willers, 27; and Denny Drew, 55, all from the Rice Lake area.
In the Southworth murder, hunters in the area reported seeing a pickup truck with three Asian men in it in the area where his body was found, about 80 miles from Sunday's shootings, Rosandich said.
The three men were described as from 5-foot-4 inches to 6-feet tall, driving a silver or gray Nissan or Chevrolet pickup truck, possibly a late 1980s model.
Court records say Vang is 5-foot-4. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported an unnamed online search engine showed Vang has owned a 1987 pickup truck, but Minnesota records do not show any record of Vang owning such a vehicle there, said Susan Lasley, spokeswoman for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.
Sawyer County Sheriff James Meier said he was unaware of any connection between Sunday's shootings and the Southworth murder.
"None, except for maybe the Asian connection. That is a lot of speculation," Meier said.
In Minnesota, Kanabec County Sheriff Steve Schulz confirmed that Vang owns 40 acres of hunting property in Brook Park, Minn., near Hinckley. He said sheriff's officials went to Vang's cabin Wednesday to investigate at the request of Wisconsin authorities but found nothing.
He added that Vang had not been cited for trespassing or any other violations in the county. KSTP-TV of the Twin Cities, which first reported that Vang had his own property, said Vang purchased it in October 2003.
Vang and one of the shooting survivors said Sunday's dispute started over a tree stand on private property. One of the theories in Southworth's murder was that he may have been shot after confronting a trespasser.
The state Justice Department is involved in both investigations. Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager declined to comment on either case Wednesday.
On Sunday, Daryl Gass said he was the first person to see Vang after the shootout, when he emerged from the woods around 12:30 p.m. wearing a hunting jacket and carrying a rifle.
"He seemed nervous," Gass, 41, of New Auburn, told the Leader-Telegram of Eau Claire for a story Wednesday. "There was something peculiar about him."
Gass said he directed Vang to a busy logging road.
"He said, 'I don't really want to go that way,' " Gass said. "I thought that was odd."
Vang told investigators a member of the hunting group shot at him first, but Lauren Hesebeck, one of two hunters wounded in the shootout, said his party returned fire only after Vang shot at them, according to court records.
In Haugen, where three of the victims lived, Jim Hill, 63, the owner of the Village Grocery, said he will never believe the hunting party fired the first shot.
"If those guys would have shot first, Vang would have been dead. He would never have been able to pull the trigger," Hill said.
The victims were part of a group of about 15 people who made their annual opening-weekend trip to the 400-acre property.
Vang claims the hunters taunted him with racial slurs and warned they would report him to law enforcement - which also differs from Hesebeck's account, according to court records.
By Wednesday, hundreds of area residents were sporting small blaze orange ribbons they received after donating to a fund set up for the victims' and survivors' families at Dairy State Bank. Administrative assistant Carolyn Anderson said thousands of dollars had been donated.
Sharon Thrumbel, 61, tied blaze orange ribbons around light poles, street signs and stop signs Wednesday on Main Street in the town of 286 people. She also tied one around the a lamppost at Al Laski's home and planned to do the same at the Crotteaus.
"This symbolizes that we are a community that is very supportive of each other at a time of need," she said. "The message is that people should come together more."
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Associated Press writers Juliet Williams in Milwaukee and JR Ross in Madison contributed to this report.
Court records say Vang is 5-foot-4. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported an unnamed online search engine showed Vang has owned a 1987 pickup truck, but Minnesota records do not show any record of Vang owning such a vehicle there, said Susan Lasley, spokeswoman for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.
He added that Vang had not been cited for trespassing or any other violations in the county. KSTP-TV of the Twin Cities, which first reported that Vang had his own property, said Vang purchased it in October 2003.
Say WHAT???
This cat owns hunting land in MN? What the [explicitive deleted] is he doing trespassing in WI???