Lawyer accused of beating wife to death as she clung to infant son and two other children watched

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A Minnesota mother-of-five was allegedly beaten to death by her lawyer ex-husband while she held their three-year-old child in her arms during a custody exchange.

Thirty-one-year-old Anders Odegaard has been charged with second-degree murder in the killing of his ex-wife Carissa, also 31.

Authorities in Warren responded to Mr Odegaard’s residence around 5pm on Tuesday after his nine-year-old son alerted a motorist of the attack. Ms Odegaard had arrived at the home to pick up her five children and take them to church, the Daily Mail reported.

Mr Odegaard then allegedly refused to let the children leave and began choking and beating his ex-wife until she lost consciousness. The two oldest Odegaard children witnessed the attack while their mother held their little brother in her arms.

When authorities arrived at the scene, they reportedly found Mr Odegaard covered in blood and only wearing underwear.

Ms Odegaard was found severely injured and was transported to Sanford Hospital in Fargo, North Dakota, where she later died. The couple had filed for divorce in 2021 citing “irretrievable breakdown,” after 10 years of marriage.

Mr Odegaard was arrested and his bond was set at $2.5m, Fox News reported.

According to police, his oldest son sought help from a motorist who then alerted police. Two other children, six and four, were inside Ms Odegaard’s vehicle

“[The motorist] spoke to the older of the two boys who said his mother was inside the house laying on the floor bleeding really bad. The boy said that he thinks that she is dead,” the criminal complaint obtained by the Mail reads.

“He asked the boy who was in the house and he said his dad was inside with his mom.”

The oldest children told police that Mr Odegaard had struck their mother with a knife in the head and he later “was on top of [their mother] choking her,” Fox reported. When they tapped Ms Odegaard’s foot, she wasn’t moving.

Mr Odegaard allegedly told police he “didn’t feel right” when he was questioned about what had happened. His three-year-old did not answer questions by responding officers.

“The toddler would not say anything. He did see what happened because his mother had been holding him at the time of the assault,” the police report says.

Mr Odegaard worked briefly as the Mercer County State’s Attorney in North Dakota in 2021. He continued working as a public offender in North Dakota before relocating to Minnesota.

According to a friend of Ms Odegaard, she had decided to file for divorce in 2020 citing emotional abuse.

According to Fox, Ms Odegaard had physical custody of the children, but Mr Odegaard was allowed to spend time with them as well.

Ms Odegaard, who ran a photography business, was remembered fondly by family and members of the community, who described her as a devoted mother.

“After leaving her ex-husband I watched her rebuild a beautiful life for her and her kids, she invested herself in all of their needs. She was so elegant with each of their personalities, and gave all of them tools to succeed while cheering each of them on in their interest,” her sister, Anna Woinarowicz, told Inforum.

The family has created a GoFundMe to cover burial costs. More than $33,000 has been raised.