IA - Tyler, Sarah, and Lula Schmidt Killed at Maquoketa Caves State Park Campsite, 2022 *killer dead*

[Marysmith]

I do know one thing, which is that I am never going camping again.

I hear you.

 

[PacoElFlaco]

Why did he target the Schmidts? Was there a previous interaction? Was it something to do with computers? Was it because they had a little girl? Or was it just that their tent was the closest? We know it was close, but was it actually the closest? AS is no longer alive to tell us, and I can't imagine that his parents will be much help. So maybe it's up to us to work it out.

I see the options as follows in no particular order:

1. He was angered at something about the Schmidts. Could be something real or something imagined. Could be something very trivial. Maybe the kids woke him up early or cut in front of him at the restroom. Maybe he didn't like the way the Schmidts looked or how they reacted to him, or they made him jealous of their family dynamic etc.

2. He wanted to sexually molest one of the Schmidts. Seeing as how the daughter was strangled and therefore probably the last to die, I would assume she would have been the target. This theory seems most likely to me.

3. He just woke up and decided to kill people, or had been planning to kill people for a while, or he took some psychotropic drug that made him want to kill, and the Schmidts were the closest people besides his own family.

4. He was operating under the delusion that the Schmidts had sabotaged his malfunctioning computer system and decided he had to get revenge.

5. There was some unacknowledged previous connection, probably online, between AOS and one or more of the Schmidts. This seems unlikely to me.

6. As someone theorized upthread, maybe he did it to "get revenge" on his parents by killing people and ending his life and leaving Mom and Dad to pick up the pieces.

 

[Kemug]

Yes, @PacoElFlaco, I agree with you that no.2 seems the most likely. Plus there seems to be some evidence for it.

 

[MntnHiker]

I sadly agree with the theory that his primary motive was a sexual assault of the little girl. I hate even writing this out. What leads me this way is 1) Police stating there is a potential motive but they aren't releasing it. It's disturbing and upsetting and would further traumatize the family who is alive. 2) She was strangled which makes me think she was the primary target. 3) They do not want to say what the boy was doing/how he got away.

Is it possible their tent was one with "rooms" and the kids slept somewhat separately from the parents? He snuck in (armed) with the intent of either assaulting the girl right there or kidnapping her. Her brother was nearby and escaped shortly after realizing a strange man was in their tent doing things to his sister.

All just my theories but IMO the most likely so far.

 

[PacoElFlaco]

I sadly agree with the theory that his primary motive was a sexual assault of the little girl. I hate even writing this out. What leads me this way is 1) Police stating there is a potential motive but they aren't releasing it. It's disturbing and upsetting and would further traumatize the family who is alive. 2) She was strangled which makes me think she was the primary target. 3) They do not want to say what the boy was doing/how he got away.

Is it possible their tent was one with "rooms" and the kids slept somewhat separately from the parents? He snuck in (armed) with the intent of either assaulting the girl right there or kidnapping her. Her brother was nearby and escaped shortly after realizing a strange man was in their tent doing things to his sister.

All just my theories but IMO the most likely so far.

The thing I am wondering is if AOS actually thought he would get away with this. I mean, perhaps he thought he could sneak in the tent and do what he wanted and escape, or abduct the girl or whatever, and nobody would ever know he was responsible.

I get the feeling from this that he was planning it as a stealth mission, but things went awry when the adults woke up. His flight and suicide seem unplanned and desperate, as if he either realized the horror of what he had done and could not live with it, or he just could not face arrest and having his parents know what he had done.

Sherwin probably went his whole life being called a genius by his parents and guarded from consequences. He probably thought he was a master criminal and could get away with it. People like that often are very naive about the realities of a situation.

 

[RickshawFan]

Why couldn't he have been carrying the gun with him (in a pocket, in his waistband, in a holster, in a bag or backpack), even if he started first with some other instrument of attack? Maybe he started with whatever caused the sharp force injuries, then pulled out his gun and finished the attack? (The gun at the end makes sense to me because the noise may alert others.)

MOO.

Why would AOS use a sharp object if he had a gun right on him? I'm thinking the gun wasn't handy.

 

[PacoElFlaco]

Why would AOS use a sharp object if he had a gun right on him? I'm thinking the gun wasn't handy.

Guns are loud. I think he hoped he could get away with his crime. This sounds awful, but I'm thinking he tried killing them with a hatchet and strangulation first, and only shot them out of desperation when two of the Schmidts did not die fast enough. I think he had the gun with him as his "just in case" weapon, but his initial attacks were with the edged weapon and bare hands.

 

[vls12345]

Why would AOS use a sharp object if he had a gun right on him? I'm thinking the gun wasn't handy.

Maybe because it's quieter & he could stay in the tent longer to do whatever he went there to do. A gun makes noise that might bring "unwanted" attention. (Unless he had a silencer but I don't think he did since some people have reported hearing gunshots there.)

MOO.

 

[Kemug]

I don't think I'm a particularly vindictive person, but I would have liked AS to be tried, convicted and punished for these abominable murders.

 

[realanastasia]

Why would AOS use a sharp object if he had a gun right on him? I'm thinking the gun wasn't handy.

Don’t know why it took me so long to suggest this, but since we have only scant details about the homemade gun AS apparently used, is it not possible that what he used to inflict the “sharp force injuries” might actually be a homemade bayonet? Per Wikipedia, “A bayonet (from French baïonnette) is a knife, dagger, sword, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit on the end of the muzzle of a rifle, musket or similar firearm, allowing it to be used as a spear-like weapon.”

If AS was capable of making himself a functional firearm, then he surely could’ve made an attachment like a bayonet to go on the firearm. That would allow him to use multiple types of weapons in his attack without having to leave the scene to retrieve anything.

 

[fred&edna]

I don't think I'm a particularly vindictive person, but I would have liked AS to be tried, convicted and punished for these abominable murders.

I know what you mean. But, on the other hand, a trial would likely have involved Arlo's testimony (and I don't think any of us would want him to endure that).

 

[PacoElFlaco]

Don’t know why it took me so long to suggest this, but since we have only scant details about the homemade gun AS apparently used, is it not possible that what he used to inflict the “sharp force injuries” might actually be a homemade bayonet? Per Wikipedia, “A bayonet (from French baïonnette) is a knife, dagger, sword, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit on the end of the muzzle of a rifle, musket or similar firearm, allowing it to be used as a spear-like weapon.”

If AS was capable of making himself a functional firearm, then he surely could’ve made an attachment like a bayonet to go on the firearm. That would allow him to use multiple types of weapons in his attack without having to leave the scene to retrieve anything.

"Making" a ghost gun is actually just assembling parts from a kit into a functioning gun. It would involve grinding or filing and fitting of parts, and applying bluing finish to the raw metal. Making a bayonet would involve metallurgic skills like forging and heat-treating. Also, the police said the weapon's caliber was 9mm which is mainly a pistol round. Although there have been bayonets made for pistols, it's not common. Most likely the weapon was something like a hatchet or machete or camp knife. All common tools used in camping.

 

[RickshawFan]

Don’t know why it took me so long to suggest this, but since we have only scant details about the homemade gun AS apparently used, is it not possible that what he used to inflict the “sharp force injuries” might actually be a homemade bayonet? Per Wikipedia, “A bayonet (from French baïonnette) is a knife, dagger, sword, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit on the end of the muzzle of a rifle, musket or similar firearm, allowing it to be used as a spear-like weapon.”

If AS was capable of making himself a functional firearm, then he surely could’ve made an attachment like a bayonet to go on the firearm. That would allow him to use multiple types of weapons in his attack without having to leave the scene to retrieve anything.

Didn't he use a Glock-clone made from the kit? Surely, you can't attach a bayonet?

However, LE ^^^ said that most of the parts of the ghost gun could be purchased online. I want to know what COULDN'T be purchased online.

Would he have used more than one magazine?

 

[PacoElFlaco]

Didn't he use a Glock-clone made from the kit? Surely, you can't attach a bayonet?

However, LE ^^^ said that most of the parts of the ghost gun could be purchased online. I want to know what COULDN'T be purchased online.

Would he have used more than one magazine?

Actually, a company did market pistol bayonets about 10-15 years ago, but they are considered very impractical and basically a joke. People on gun forums laugh at the concept.

I think the actual inner components that make the ghost gun capable to fire are harder to buy than the frame, barrel, grips, etc.

A Glock's standard magazine is 15 rounds. He shot twice during the murders and then presumably once to kill himself, so one magazine would have been more than enough.

 

[airportwoman]

Here's an update, FWIW. 8 1/2 minutes in length. In short, they really don't know any more than they did when it happened.

So Much Is Still Not Known About Campground Murders

On Midwest Week, more than a month later, we still know very little about some brutal murders in an eastern Iowa campground this summer.

www.wvik.org

 

[WingsOverTX]

Here's an update, FWIW. 8 1/2 minutes in length. In short, they really don't know any more than they did when it happened.

So Much Is Still Not Known About Campground Murders

On Midwest Week, more than a month later, we still know very little about some brutal murders in an eastern Iowa campground this summer.

www.wvik.org

That is frustrating. Conclusion: LE are not releasing any further details beyond the autopsy info that was already released.

I am puzzled this report says that AS's mother said they were traveling with a gun due to a perception that camping can be unsafe.

Was it determined that the family had a weapon in addition to the one AS was carrying that he built from ghost gun parts? If so, I missed that.

MOO

 

[Kemug]

I am puzzled this report says that AS's mother said they were traveling with a gun due to a perception that camping can be unsafe.

She was correct

 

[fred&edna]

Here's an update, FWIW. 8 1/2 minutes in length. In short, they really don't know any more than they did when it happened.

So Much Is Still Not Known About Campground Murders

On Midwest Week, more than a month later, we still know very little about some brutal murders in an eastern Iowa campground this summer.

www.wvik.org

I do wonder if the investigation is still on-going since there are no charges against a dead man. And, if it is on-going is the primary delay due to LE's inability to access the killers computer and phone. Can there ever be criminal or civil charges brought against the killers family in the future?

 

[WingsOverTX]

I do wonder if the investigation is still on-going since there are no charges against a dead man. And, if it is on-going is the primary delay due to LE's inability to access the killers computer and phone. Can there ever be criminal or civil charges brought against the killers family in the future?

Arlo might have a cause of action but due to his age, a guardian would have to pursue it on his behalf.

I do think withholding the details of where Arlo was when his family was killed is unfortunate. Perhaps there is pending litigation or fear of it by AS's family that is causing more info to be held close.

I can see AS's parents having insurance of some kind that might be pursued for victim compensation.

IANAL but would like to hear some legal opinions are: potential liability claims & whether any have been successful for other survivors of horrific crimes similar to this.

JMO

 

[realanastasia]

FINALLY, a follow up story on the investigation. I think the mother is still badly in denial about her son, but I have to agree with her perception (and the reporter’s assessment) that the state is, for some reason, very much trying to make info about these crimes virtually inaccessible to the public. Trying to cover up incompetence on the part of the 911 dispatcher and/or the ranger who wouldn’t answer the phone when called by 911? Or on the part of law enforcement, perhaps?

Maquoketa murders: 911 call reveals new information about morning four were killed

Three people, including a 6-year-old girl, were murdered inside their tent at Maquoketa State Park in July. Since then, Iowa investigators have given no hint of a motive and refuse

qctimes.com