LINCOLN COUNTY, Mo. (TCN) — A 40-year-old man has been charged with murder in connection with the death of his father, who was allegedly found fatally stabbed and buried in a shallow grave on his property.
KDSK reports 63-year-old Michael Saettele was last seen on Aug. 15. According to investigators, he had left his cellphone and vehicle at the home where he lived with his son, Richard Scott Saettele. KMOV reports the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office began a missing person investigation on Oct. 18 and Michael Saettele’s son became a suspect after several leads allegedly pointed to him.
According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by Law & Crime, someone called police on Oct. 24 after Richard Saettele allegedly told them he had stabbed his father, read him his last rites, and buried him. Responding officers, with the help of a cadaver canine, located human remains inside a shed under fiberglass insulation and construction debris.
Police took Richard Saettele into custody and he allegedly told them his father had thrown a screwdriver at him during an argument sometime in late September, according to Law & Crime. Richard Saettele then claimed he stabbed his father in the eye with the screwdriver and it became stuck when he tried to remove it. After witnessing his father suffer for about five minutes, Richard Saettele allegedly said the Lord’s Prayer with him.
According to the affidavit, “[Richard] Saettele stated he could no longer watch the suffering so he entered the residence and knowingly obtained a cleaver kitchen knife he described to be 2 inches wide and approximately 9 inches long with the intent to end the victim’s life.”
Saettele allegedly claimed he read his father his last rites before stabbing him in the heart, per Law & Crime. He then allegedly claimed he buried him in a shallow grave and covered the grave with insulation when he began to smell decomposition.
According to the sheriff’s office, Saettele was charged with first-degree murder, first-degree domestic assault, and two counts of armed criminal action. He remains held behind bars without bond.
The investigation is ongoing.
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