Mom yells for kids to call 911 as their dad shoots and kills her, Minnesota cops say

Two children watched their mom collapse to the ground as their father held a semi-automatic rifle, Minnesota authorities say.

“I would like to report a murder,” a man told a 911 dispatcher following the Dec. 28 shooting near Dassel, according to a criminal complaint.

The man on the other end of the phone was Bryan Demarais, a 35-year-old father who was admitting to the killing of his wife, Kayla Demarais, court records show.

Kayla Demarais was discovered dead in the home, having been shot “repeatedly” in the head, according to the Meeker County Sheriff’s Office. Her husband surrendered at the scene.

The shooting stemmed from an argument between the couple over “financial problems and ongoing marital issues,” authorities said.

Their children, ages 11 and 8, were in the oldest child’s bedroom playing video games when they heard the argument, the kids said in an interview with deputies.

The children said they heard a gunshot, then witnessed their mother fall to the ground.

“Call 911,” the mother told her children after being shot, the 8-year-old said in her interview, according to the court documents. But the father said he would call 911 on his own.

He closed the door on his children and ordered them to keep it shut, according to the complaint. The children, according to the sheriff’s office, continued to hear a barrage of gunfire.

The father eventually called authorities as his wife’s lifeless body lay on the living room floor, court records show. An autopsy later revealed she was shot in the head and back.

Multiple firearm casings were discovered in the living room near Kayla Demarais’ body, the sheriff’s office said. A bullet also entered the bedroom of the couple’s 8-year-old child.

Bryan Demarais was charged with second-degree murder and two counts of child endangerment, according to the complaint. He was placed in the Meeker County Jail.

The children were removed from the home through a bedroom window.

Dassel is about 55 miles northwest of Minneapolis.

This story was originally published January 4, 2024 at 12:41 PM with the headline "Mom yells for kids to call 911 as their dad shoots and kills her, Minnesota cops say."