Arrest Made - Dustin Kjersem, 35, killed while camping, 911 caller thought bear attack, sheriff says murder, Oct. 12, 2024

[siliconrod]

Did anyone see Dustin's friend waiting for Dustin at the meet-up place to verify his story or is it too isolated.
Did Dustin have defensive wounds on his body if not maybe he was killed while asleep or maybe he knew is attacker and had let his guard down and wasn't able to respond in time to the attack.

 

[Knox]

The only social media I found was TikTok - Make Your Day but it's private.

His injuries are described as "multiple chop wounds". Are we potentially looking at an axe?

 

[georgiajean]

(I thought I had posted regarding this earlier, but I've been having computer problems so pardon the double post if I did.)

@georgiajean I was wondering where you got this image from. Specifically I mean where is this physical location? The access road that I see for Moose Creek Road off of hwy 191 based on google maps does not look like this. So I am confused.
Here is the view on google maps:
View attachment 538738
Moose Creek Rd and US-191

ETA: I'm asking this question since I want to know if a the road in to the campsites is super rough. It doesn't look that way on google maps, but there's no street view past this point.

Thank you for this. And no, you didn't double post.
I can't go fix my post, but what I said is inaccurate. The image I posted is actually of a DIFFERENT Moose Creek dispersed camping up north by Helene. I will flag that post and have it removed. Thank you!

 

[acutename]

(I thought I had posted regarding this earlier, but I've been having computer problems so pardon the double post if I did.)

@georgiajean I was wondering where you got this image from. Specifically I mean where is this physical location? The access road that I see for Moose Creek Road off of hwy 191 based on google maps does not look like this. So I am confused.
Here is the view on google maps:
View attachment 538738
Moose Creek Rd and US-191

ETA: I'm asking this question since I want to know if a the road in to the campsites is super rough. It doesn't look that way on google maps, but there's no street view past this point.

If you read the reviews by people in the link posted at #29, the last mile is dirt but people seem to be able to drive there with 2WD. Of course streams can wash things out so only a local would know if it is still relatively flat. Says bad cell coverage as per the reviewers.

 

[RickshawFan]

So many questions! Where were the friend and Dustin supposed to meet? How long had Dustin been staying at this makeshift campsite?

From the CBSnews.com article posted above:
"Dustin Kjersem, 35, was found dead in his tent on Saturday morning along Moose Creek Road north of Big Sky, Montana, Gallatin County Sheriff Dan Springer said at news conference Wednesday. A friend who was supposed to have met Kjersem went searching for him when he didn't show up as scheduled on Friday.

The friend ultimately discovered Kjersem's body in a tent at a makeshift campsite and called 911, telling responders the death appeared to have been caused by a bear attack, the sheriff's office said.
An agent with the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks agency who visited the site, however, found no signs of bear activity, and investigators said they soon found evidence of a "vicious attack," which is being investigated as a homicide."
---
"He was brutally killed at his campsite and we need your help," Springer said, adding that his detectives were working "all hours of day and night to find his killer."

I don't know what a “makeshift campsite” is. Camping is by definition “makeshift”. Perhaps they mean he wasn’t in a developed campground? Or he was homeless?

 

[Razz]

I believe I recall someone said the truck was found in the parking lot but there was room at the campsite to park his truck.

So, on Thursday eve did he drive his truck to the campsite and unload all his stuff and then return his truck to the parking lot? Or did he erect his tent (that contained alot of equipment) leave his truck at the campsite and settle down for the night?

It's hard to imagine that he would return the truck to the parking lot, walk the 2 miles back to his campsite all while it was dark. It makes more sense that he kept the truck at his campsite for the night and then drove it back to the parking lot next morning.

So could this have happened Friday night?

 

[tealrose]

"Makeshift" is just some journalist who doesn't understand that "dispersed" camping is what it's called anywhere it's legal to camp that isn't in a developed campground. Also called boondocking. Frequently, there are unofficial groups of campsites - like what is described here - that isn't an official campground, but is used and camper-developed enough over time that it would be reasonable to call it a campsite, as if it was in a campground.

 

[Knox]

Were there others camped in the area he pitched his tent?

 

[Knox]

I believe I recall someone said the truck was found in the parking lot but there was room at the campsite to park his truck.

So, on Thursday eve did he drive his truck to the campsite and unload all his stuff and then return his truck to the parking lot? Or did he erect his tent (that contained alot of equipment) leave his truck at the campsite and settle down for the night?

It's hard to imagine that he would return the truck to the parking lot, walk the 2 miles back to his campsite all while it was dark. It makes more sense that he kept the truck at his campsite for the night and then drove it back to the parking lot next morning.

So could this have happened Friday night?

If there was room to park at the campsite, why move his truck at all? Or are you not allowed to keep a vehicle there?

 

[acutename]

his business

https://www.houzz.com/professionals/handyman/dustin-kjersem-construction-pfvwus-pf~1203343684

 

[acutename]

Were there others camped in the area he pitched his tent?

tough to believe there was no noise made during the chop wounding so my guess is "no" IMO
(well, unless it was the perpetrator(s))

 

[mickey2942]

I know quite a bit about construction work in the area. I noticed that he does work in Construction, no company has been mentioned...maybe he freelances.

Lots to look at for LEO:
1. Family
2. Friends
3. Coworkers
4. Roommates?
5. Financial issues
6. Ex spouses, ex GF
7. Some deal that created animosity
8. Crazy person in woods with ax.

So, I am not assuming anything at this point.

 

[Knox]

Moose Creek Flat Campground, Custer Gallatin National Forest - Recreation.gov

Explore Moose Creek Flat Campground in Custer Gallatin National Forest, Montana with Recreation.gov. Moose Creek Flat Campground is located in scenic Gallatin Canyon on the Bozeman Ranger District of the Gallatin National Forest, in Montana. It is 32 miles sout

www.recreation.gov

Is this it? 45°21'24.0"N 111°10'17.0"W

 

[AndrewM71]

Spend enough time in remote/backcountry areas, and you will have the occasional encounter that makes your spidey senses tingle. I wouldn’t be surprised if a mild confrontation or encounter with an unstable individual led to an attack in the middle of the night.

 

[LadyL]

I think this is a random stranger - someone unstable who thinks Dustin was in their 'spot' maybe.

 

[Boots38]

What a horrible tragic murder on this young man. I am not caught up on the case, but did read he had significant damage to the skull as well as some areas of the body.

Does it sound personal, perhaps someone known to the victim, wanted revenge or was this an attempt to steal from Dustin? jmo

Is there a link for the significant skull damage?

 

[Rhenish]

Simply Horrific! This case reminds me of the serial killer Israel Keyes, he would target random people in remote locations, like campgrounds. He planned in advance and sometimes had "kill kits" stashed in advance in the woods. I think random and planned is a possibility. How terrible for this poor man, young man.

 

[Snoopster]

Moose Creek Flat Campground, Custer Gallatin National Forest - Recreation.gov

Explore Moose Creek Flat Campground in Custer Gallatin National Forest, Montana with Recreation.gov. Moose Creek Flat Campground is located in scenic Gallatin Canyon on the Bozeman Ranger District of the Gallatin National Forest, in Montana. It is 32 miles sout

www.recreation.gov

Is this it? 45°21'24.0"N 111°10'17.0"W

He wasn't in that campground. He was about 2.5 miles up Moose Creek Rd, east of there. From the spot you pinned you can see the beginning of Moose Creek Rd, heading off on the east side of Hwy 191, across from those camping spots on 191.

The location of the dispersed Moose Creek Road camping is 45.343916, -111.139629

 

[Rosydecember]

Maybe he parked in the lot so his buddy would be able to find him due to poor cell service? Moo

 

[Snoopster]

I believe I recall someone said the truck was found in the parking lot but there was room at the campsite to park his truck.

So, on Thursday eve did he drive his truck to the campsite and unload all his stuff and then return his truck to the parking lot? Or did he erect his tent (that contained alot of equipment) leave his truck at the campsite and settle down for the night?

It's hard to imagine that he would return the truck to the parking lot, walk the 2 miles back to his campsite all while it was dark. It makes more sense that he kept the truck at his campsite for the night and then drove it back to the parking lot next morning.

So could this have happened Friday night?

I'm still having difficulty believing that his truck was parked in the lot by hwy 191. I haven't seen that written anywhere in the media or mentioned by LE. One poster hear said they heard it on the TV. I looked at the online article associated with that channel at time and there was no mention of his truck being parked by the highway. It's possible that the reporter worded it poorly as the phrase in the article says his tent was set up 2.5 miles up Moose Creek Rd from hwy 191, The assumption may have been made that it was ONLY his tent that was there, even though there was no mention of his truck at the time.
Hopefully we'll get clarification soon, but for now we don't have solid proof of where his truck was found.