A South Dakota man murdered his own mother and then decapitated her, according to authorities.
Bowen Fladland, aged 36, has been charged with both first- and second-degree murder for the death of Marlene Fladland, according to a press release from the South Dakota Attorney General’s Office. Law&Crime obtained a probable cause arrest affidavit stating that police in Clark, a small town of approximately 1,000 residents in eastern South Dakota, responded on Tuesday to a residence on North Cloud Street, where they discovered the victim deceased in the front yard.
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A family member informed the police that they had conversed with Marlene Fladland around 10 a.m. on Saturday, during which Marlene mentioned that her son was physically assaulting her. The police noted that the mother and son cohabited in the home. Investigators located Bowen Fladland in Watertown, roughly 30 miles east of his residence, on Tuesday. He agreed to speak with them.
“In a post-Miranda interview, Fladland confessed to assaulting his mother by kneeling on her neck until she seemed to be dead, and then using a tool to remove her head,” stated the affidavit.
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The affidavit did not include a motive for the slaying, but court records reportedly say Bowen Fladland had a history of assaulting his mother. Local CBS affiliate KELO obtained arrest reports reflecting charges of assault on consecutive days some two years ago. He reportedly grabbed her by the throat and pushed her to the bed, causing her to become light-headed. He also grabbed her by the throat the next day and shoved her against a refrigerator, KELO reported.
When Marlene Fladland escaped his grasp, he held up two butter knives and threatened to kill her, per records. He was convicted of aggravated battery and received a 10-year suspended jail sentence. He reportedly violated his probation about two months ago, according to KELO.
Bowen Fladland is currently at the Codington County Jail in Watertown on a $500,000 cash bond.
