A rural Dassel man who last week surrendered himself to law enforcement at his central Minnesota home after reporting that he shot his wife is now charged in the homicide, alleged to have been witnessed by their two children, ages 8 and 11.

Bryan William Demarais, 35, made his first court appearance Tuesday in Meeker County District Court on a second-degree murder charge and two felony counts of child endangerment.

Kayla Marie Demarais was killed Dec. 28, 2023. She is shown in a photo shared by family on a fundraising website. (GoFundMe)

The death of his wife, Kayla Demarais, 29, was ruled a homicide resulting from multiple gunshot wounds, according to an autopsy report from the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office.

According to the criminal complaint, Bryan Demarais suspected his wife was having an affair and was arguing with her about his suspicions as well as the couple’s financial difficulties.

A search of the residence in the 22000 block of 713th Avenue yielded multiple .22-caliber rounds found near Kayla Demarais’ body in the living room area of the home. Court documents do not identify her by name, but she was named in an earlier news release by the Meeker County Sheriff’s Office.

Neither child was physically harmed, and the Meeker County Sheriff’s Office said they have been placed in protective custody.

On the morning of Dec. 28, Bryan Demarais called law enforcement from his residence to report that he had shot his wife and requested a law enforcement response. According to the criminal complaint, he also advised the dispatcher that children were present in the home and he had told them to stay back.

He requested that the children be removed from the home through a window in another room where they would not have to see their mother.

He then stated that he had shot his wife repeatedly in the head but said he “may have hit a couple other spots,” according to the complaint.

When he was interviewed, Bryan Demarais said that he and his wife had argued the previous evening about financial problems and ongoing marital issues. He told officers his wife was involved in an extramarital relationship and that he found messages on his wife’s phone that morning from the other man.

Bryan Demarais (Meeker County Jail)

Demarais said he was so mad before leaving for work that he told their two children there would be a divorce, according to the complaint. He said he only got angrier after speaking with his wife on the phone while heading to his place of employment in Hutchinson and immediately hung up. According to the complaint, she attempted to call him two more times, but he did not answer. He also stated he couldn’t recall any events after declining her calls.

According to the criminal complaint, Bryan Demarais suffers from medical conditions that can result in short-term memory loss. He qualifies for caregiver services and had designated Kayla Demarais as his primary caregiver.

Bryan Demarais’ supervisor told law enforcement that Demarais had arrived late for a 9 a.m. shift on Dec. 28. He said Demarais told him that his marriage was over and appeared to be extremely distraught. The supervisor offered additional support services, but Demarais declined, according to the complaint. The supervisor then allowed him to go home for the rest of the day.

In interviews with police, the two children said they were playing video games in the 11-year-old’s bedroom when their father came home.

After they heard yelling, they said they heard gunshots and saw through the open bedroom door their mother fall to the ground. She reportedly called for the children to dial 911 but Demarais instead told them to close the door and he would call 911.

According to the complaint,  the children said they were “scared” and heard “a lot” of gunshots.

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