Bryce Brogle Murder: LaFlex’s Trial, Life Sentence, and Appeal

The Bryce Brogle murder was the October 2022 killing of a 23-year-old Minnesota man by his girlfriend’s father, Michael Lee LaFlex, who lured Brogle to a rented storage unit in Crow Wing County, shot him in the back of the head with a .22-caliber rifle, and buried the body on public land near Lake Edward. A Crow Wing County jury convicted LaFlex of first-degree premeditated murder on April 10, 2024, and Judge Charles Halverson sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

How Brogle Was Killed and Found

Bryce Brogle, born September 24, 1999, was dating Cordelia LaFlex, the daughter of 46-year-old Michael Lee LaFlex of Merrifield, Minnesota. On October 26, 2022, Brogle was last seen leaving a residence in Center Township to accompany LaFlex to a storage unit LaFlex rented in Mission Township.¹

Cordelia reported him missing to the Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office on October 28. The next day, deputies executed a search warrant at LaFlex’s storage unit and found a substance that tested positive for blood, a bottle of bleach, and drag marks on the concrete floor consistent with the width of a sled. LaFlex was booked into the Crow Wing County Jail that same day.²

On October 30, investigators searched public land near Lake Edward and located a clandestine grave roughly three feet deep. Brogle’s body was recovered from beneath about two feet of dirt, with an apparent gunshot wound to the back of the head. The Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death a homicide, with the cause listed as a distant gunshot wound to the back of the head.³⁴

How Investigators Tied LaFlex to the Killing

The physical evidence at the storage unit matched Brogle. DNA testing identified Brogle as the major contributor to the blood spatter found inside. A bleach bottle cap yielded a DNA mixture with LaFlex as the major contributor and Brogle as the minor contributor. A sled recovered from a nearby ditch carried Brogle’s blood, and the medical examiner noted lividity indicating the body had been moved six to eight hours after death. A Bureau of Criminal Apprehension technician identified the recovered bullet as a .22 caliber round.³

Cell phone location data placed LaFlex at the storage unit for 22 minutes on October 27, followed by an hour on public land near Lake Edward.³

Tips came in almost immediately. An anonymous “concerned citizen” told deputies that a family member of LaFlex had disclosed the killing and burial. Brogle and Cordelia’s landlord contacted the sheriff’s office and reported that LaFlex had called him to ask whether Brogle had ever hurt Cordelia. The landlord said he had personally seen Cordelia with two black eyes, and that during the call LaFlex said he was “going to kill Brogle and had already dug the hole.”²⁴

LaFlex first told investigators that Brogle had been arrested by unknown law enforcement officers who confiscated his cellphones. He later changed the story and admitted he had thrown the phones in a trash can at a Brainerd gas station. Officers recovered them from the location he described.²

The Premeditation Case at Trial

LaFlex was arraigned on November 1, 2022, on second-degree intentional murder, with bail set at $2 million.⁵⁶⁷

The prosecution’s central theme was that LaFlex had been talking about killing Brogle for months. Rebecca Moore testified that in August 2022, LaFlex told her he wanted to kill Brogle and would bury him where “no one would find it.” Tamara Waters testified that LaFlex had previously told her he would kill Brogle if Brogle ever hurt his daughter.³⁸

Nancy Cross, who knew LaFlex through the Brainerd Lions Club, testified that on October 25, 2022, an agitated LaFlex called her after learning his daughter and Brogle were returning to Minnesota. He told Cross he had contacted a landlord in Washington state and learned his daughter had a black eye, then said he could “kill Brogle” and that “the hole was already dug.” Cross said she offered contact information for family help organizations and he dismissed it. Two days later, she said, LaFlex told her Brogle had been taken into custody and was likely being extradited to Arizona.⁸

LaFlex’s own family testified against him. His sister, Jen Baker, said LaFlex borrowed her car on October 28, telling her he needed it to “bury Brogle,” and said he had shot Brogle in the back of the head and “they were never going to find his body.” She also said LaFlex had taken a firearm from her house on October 26, claiming he needed it to “kill a rodent.” On cross-examination she said she believed he acted to protect Cordelia. His brother, Patrick Baker, testified that he contacted the sheriff’s office after speaking with Jen, saying, “I did not want myself or my sister to be involved.” Patrick confirmed LaFlex had told him the “hole was already dug” and that he wanted to kill Brogle, though Patrick said at the time he took it as venting.⁹

Cordelia LaFlex testified that her relationship with Brogle was steady, denied being physically abused, and described her parents as “helicopter parents” with “boundary issues.”³

The Defense and Why It Failed

The defense had signaled a defense-of-others theory built on LaFlex’s belief that Cordelia was being abused. Judge Halverson excluded that theory from jury instructions after ruling that LaFlex was the aggressor in the encounter.³

Taking the stand in his own defense, LaFlex said he went to the storage unit intending to provoke a fight so he could press charges. He testified that Brogle told him, “She is mine and she is my business,” then said, “I would kill her before I ever gave her up.” LaFlex said he “just froze” and shot Brogle from eight to ten feet away with a .22-caliber rifle. He insisted “nothing was pre-planned.” He admitted burying the body, burning the rifle’s stock, cutting the barrel into pieces, and placing them in a recycling bin, and said he was “good at digging” because of his construction background. On cross-examination he conceded Cordelia was at home at the time of the killing and was not in imminent danger.⁸

Hansen moved on April 9, 2024, to dismiss the first-degree charge for insufficient evidence of premeditation. Halverson denied the motion.⁸ In closing, the defense shifted to a “heat of passion” theory. The prosecution answered that months of statements to multiple people showed premeditation, that anger alone is not heat of passion, and that no threat justifies shooting a person in the back of the head. On April 10, 2024, the jury found LaFlex guilty of both first-degree premeditated murder and second-degree murder.¹⁰

Sentence

On June 10, 2024, Judge Halverson sentenced LaFlex to life in prison without the possibility of parole on the first-degree conviction. He was ordered to serve the sentence at the Minnesota Correctional Facility in St. Cloud and to pay $14,596.08 in court fines and fees. Ryan requested the life sentence, citing the “heinous nature of the crime.” LaFlex declined to make a statement.¹¹

Four members of Brogle’s family read victim impact statements. His grandfather, Tim Roen, told the court he now has five grandchildren instead of six and spoke of Bryce’s plans to build his own home. His sister, Brie Brogle, said LaFlex “decided his fate and planned it for months” and read Bible verses including “Thou shall not murder.” His mother, Dana Roen, said LaFlex “ripped my happiness from me” and “chose violence above all else, even his own daughter.” An aunt, Marnie Case, also spoke.¹¹¹²

Where the Appeal Stands

LaFlex filed a direct appeal to the Minnesota Supreme Court. In March 2025, Chief Justice Natalie E. Hudson signed an order staying the appeal so LaFlex could pursue postconviction relief in district court.¹³ His postconviction petition sought a hearing under Minnesota’s Schwartz procedure, alleging that one or more jurors prejudged the case midtrial and violated the court’s instructions against discussing the case before deliberations. The district court denied the petition.¹⁴

The case returned to the Minnesota Supreme Court under consolidated case numbers A24-1417 and A25-1371. Oral argument was heard on March 4, 2026, and the court had not issued a ruling as of the most recent available information.¹⁵

LaFlex’s Prior Record

LaFlex, a handyman, had two prior sex-offense convictions. In June 1999, he was convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct in Cass County and received a stayed sentence with five years of supervised probation. In September 2018, he was convicted of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a victim described in court records as mentally impaired or otherwise helpless, and received a two-year stayed sentence. The 2018 proceedings were dismissed in September 2020 after he was discharged from probation.⁵

1
Lakeland Public Television. Crow Wing County Missing Persons Case Leads to Murder Investigation
2
Brainerd Dispatch. Local Man Charged With Murder
3
Brainerd Dispatch. Crime Scene Techs Testify in the Michael LaFlex Murder Trial
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Fox News. Minnesota Dad Told Landlord He Already Dug Hole Before Executing Daughter’s Boyfriend
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Duluth News Tribune. $2M Bail Set for Man Accused of Murdering Daughter’s Boyfriend in Crow Wing County
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Brainerd Dispatch. Jury Selection Continues in LaFlex Murder Trial
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Inforum. Testimony Begins in Brainerd Murder Trial in Which Man Is Accused of Killing Daughter’s Boyfriend
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Brainerd Dispatch. LaFlex Testifies in His Own Defense
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Brainerd Dispatch. Testimony Continues in Michael LaFlex Murder Trial
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Star Tribune. Jury Convicts Brainerd Man Who Fatally Shot Daughter’s Boyfriend Allegedly Over Suspected Abuse
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Brainerd Dispatch. LaFlex Sentenced to Life in Prison
12
Bring Me The News. Minnesota Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Killing Daughter’s Boyfriend
13
Leagle. State of Minnesota v. Michael Lee LaFlex
14
Minnesota Judicial Branch. Supreme Court Archive Calendars – March 2026
15
Minnesota Judicial Branch. State of Minnesota vs. Michael Lee LaFlex – Oral Argument