BRAINERD, Minn. — Authorities say a man is in custody after allegedly kidnapping a pregnant woman and her four children, prompting an AMBER Alert near Brainerd Friday morning. The victims were unharmed.

The victim’s mother, who is pregnant, said she was up in Duluth with her husband following medical treatment when she heard the news.

At first, authorities feared the worst at the time, assuming her daughter and grandchildren were dead in the burning home. The mother said the nationwide Amber Alert started with 35-year-old Chad Aanerud assaulting his daughter at the family home.

Some of the children went to look for help. That’s when she said a neighbor, Lyle Maske, 62, arrived and was shot by Aanerud in the driveway.

“When I saw my daughter, she was beaten to death, he is very traumatized,” said the victim’s mother.

She said her daughter and Aanerud were former partners and her daughter is pregnant with Aanerud’s child.

While the family is thankful those victims escaped the ordeal, they lost the home they all shared

Around 7:15 a.m., authorities stopped Aanerud’s vehicle in Morrison County. He was arrested and the woman and children were found in the vehicle unharmed, the sheriff’s office said.

Authorities have identified the fatally shot victim as 62-year-old Lyle Maske. The shooting and kidnapping are both under investigation, according to authorities.

The sheriff’s office said Aanerud is also suspected of setting fire to a home on the property where the fatal shooting occurred.

The mother said Aanerud set fire to the house and left with the victims.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension later confirmed that the Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office had canceled the AMBER Alert and thanked everyone who helped with the search.

You can read the original report of the VNL story Here.

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