Three slain in Yankton apartment
Man, 58, arrested; no motive established
By Sam Burrish and Lynn Zerschling, Journal staff writers | Posted: Monday, September 29, 2008
Three people were slain in one of the apartments in the Marne Creek Apartment complex Sunday in Yankton, S.D. (Photo by Sam Burrish)
YANKTON, S.D. -- Yankton police took a 58-year-man into custody Sunday afternoon after three people were found shot to death inside his northwest Yankton apartment.
"We got a call that a shooting or shootings had taken place," Police Chief Duane Heeney told the Journal. "Several shots were fired. Officers responded to the residence and placed Ernest Benjamin Tupper into custody. A dispatcher was able to talk Tupper out of his apartment and officers took him into custody without incidence," Heeney said.
Heeney identified the victims as Robert Riibe, 21; Brian Vanwagner, 29; and Chassidy Bamsey, 21. Their home towns were not available. No motive for the killings has been established. They were declared dead inside Tupper's second-floor apartment. Police received the call about shots fired at 2:20 p.m.
Heeney said he did not know whether any of the victims lived in that apartment or at the Marne Creek Apartment complex or what the relationship between Tupper was with any of the younger victims.
However, Kayla Cleghorn, 18, of Yankton said Riibe lived at the complex. Cleghorn said she dates Riibe's brother and used to go out with Vanwagner.
"It's really a big shocker," she said. "They were all really nice people. ... (stayed) to themselves. If you needed anything, they'd help you."
Cleghorn said if there was a dispute before the shooting, it might have started over loud music Riibe was playing. She said Riibe had been asked on occasion to turn down the volume. However, she admitted she was unaware of past arguments among those involved.
"It's really, really depressing. Really shocking," said Cleghorn, who gathered in an adjacent mall's parking lot to observe the crime scene with other onlookers. Yellow police tape surrounded the front and east sides of the apartment complex Sunday evening. Two trailers had been brought to the site. Law enforcement officers entered and left one of the trailers.
Tupper is being held in the Yankton County Jail awaiting charges, which will include three counts of murder in the first degree, the chief said.
The Marne Creek Apartment building, at 610 W. 21st St., is located in the northwestern part of Yankton, located behind the Yankton Mall. There are 40 units in the three-story complex, according to the management company. Heeney described the area as a mixture of residential and industrial uses.
The complex containing one-bedroom apartments was built in the 1980s and is a subsidized-housing complex managed by Weinberg Property Management. Company owner Shelly O'Brien of South Sioux City said all the tenants have found other places to stay after police evacuated the apartment building Sunday.
"If there is a good thing about what happened, it is that the community of Yankton pulled together to help our tenants," O'Brien said Sunday evening on her way home from Yankton. "The Lewis and Clark Behavior Services Department, the (South Dakota) Department of Human Services and Ability Building Services were wonderful in helping me contact their family members and helping people find places to stay. They did a wonderful job."
The Yankton County states attorney, South Dakota Department of Criminal Investigation, South Dakota Highway Patrol and Yankton Police Department continue to investigate the homicides, Heeney said.
Log on to siouxcityjournal.com for a video showing the scene of the triple homicide in Yankton, and an interview with Kayla Cleghorn, an acquaintance of two of the victims.
"We got a call that a shooting or shootings had taken place," Police Chief Duane Heeney told the Journal. "Several shots were fired. Officers responded to the residence and placed Ernest Benjamin Tupper into custody. A dispatcher was able to talk Tupper out of his apartment and officers took him into custody without incidence," Heeney said.
Heeney identified the victims as Robert Riibe, 21; Brian Vanwagner, 29; and Chassidy Bamsey, 21. Their home towns were not available. No motive for the killings has been established. They were declared dead inside Tupper's second-floor apartment. Police received the call about shots fired at 2:20 p.m.
Heeney said he did not know whether any of the victims lived in that apartment or at the Marne Creek Apartment complex or what the relationship between Tupper was with any of the younger victims.
However, Kayla Cleghorn, 18, of Yankton said Riibe lived at the complex. Cleghorn said she dates Riibe's brother and used to go out with Vanwagner.
"It's really a big shocker," she said. "They were all really nice people. ... (stayed) to themselves. If you needed anything, they'd help you."
Cleghorn said if there was a dispute before the shooting, it might have started over loud music Riibe was playing. She said Riibe had been asked on occasion to turn down the volume. However, she admitted she was unaware of past arguments among those involved.
"It's really, really depressing. Really shocking," said Cleghorn, who gathered in an adjacent mall's parking lot to observe the crime scene with other onlookers. Yellow police tape surrounded the front and east sides of the apartment complex Sunday evening. Two trailers had been brought to the site. Law enforcement officers entered and left one of the trailers.
Tupper is being held in the Yankton County Jail awaiting charges, which will include three counts of murder in the first degree, the chief said.
The Marne Creek Apartment building, at 610 W. 21st St., is located in the northwestern part of Yankton, located behind the Yankton Mall. There are 40 units in the three-story complex, according to the management company. Heeney described the area as a mixture of residential and industrial uses.
The complex containing one-bedroom apartments was built in the 1980s and is a subsidized-housing complex managed by Weinberg Property Management. Company owner Shelly O'Brien of South Sioux City said all the tenants have found other places to stay after police evacuated the apartment building Sunday.
"If there is a good thing about what happened, it is that the community of Yankton pulled together to help our tenants," O'Brien said Sunday evening on her way home from Yankton. "The Lewis and Clark Behavior Services Department, the (South Dakota) Department of Human Services and Ability Building Services were wonderful in helping me contact their family members and helping people find places to stay. They did a wonderful job."
The Yankton County states attorney, South Dakota Department of Criminal Investigation, South Dakota Highway Patrol and Yankton Police Department continue to investigate the homicides, Heeney said.
Log on to siouxcityjournal.com for a video showing the scene of the triple homicide in Yankton, and an interview with Kayla Cleghorn, an acquaintance of two of the victims.
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wrote on Sep 29, 2008 2:28 PM:
wow wrote on Sep 29, 2008 11:06 AM:
the crime rate obviously isnt low.
what is the connection between the 58 year old and the three 20 ish young adults? Sounds pretty shady "
resident wrote on Sep 29, 2008 7:51 AM: