
CENTERVILLE, S.D. (KFGO) – The former mayor of a small South Dakota town who was previously charged with three counts of first-degree murder has now been indicted on nine felony counts in a triple homicide.
Jay Ostrem, 64, is accused of shooting three people to death last week in Centerville. He was indicted by a Grand Jury Wednesday on three counts of first-degree murder, three counts of second-degree murder, and three counts of first-degree murder during a burglary.
The victims were 26-year-old Paul Frankus, 21-year-old Zachary Frankus, and 35-year-old Timothy Richard.
On the night of the shootings, one of the victims called police to say he and his brother had been shot by a guy from across the street and the shooter went back home.
Court records say Ostrem’s wife told police that Paul Frankus sexually assaulted her a few days before the shootings and after she told Ostrem, he “got up and went raging out of the house.”
Ostrem was arrested at his home a short time after the shootings were reported. Officers found him with an AR-style rifle and a handgun in his pocket.
Ostrem served as mayor of Centerville about 15 years ago and worked in law enforcement in Wyoming and South Dakota. He is being held on a $1-million cash-only bond.
Centerville is about 40 miles south of Sioux Falls.
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