Bethany Bernatsky.Photo: facebook
A Minnesota man is charged with murder after allegedly shooting a woman at a resort in what seems to be a case of mistaken identity, say authorities.
On Thursday, just after 11 p.m., deputies responded to a call about shots fired near the Cozy Bay Resort on Lake Edward in Nisswa, the Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office says in a release.
Deputies found Cameron Jay Moser, 29, of Brainerd, “armed with a rifle and a handgun,” the release says.
For nearly two hours, deputies negotiated with Moser, “eventually convincing him to put down his weapons in a safe location,” the release says.
Moser was arrested and taken into custody.
Cameron Moser.Crow Wing County Jail
While searching the property where the shooting had been reported, the Crow Wing County Tactical Response Team located the body of a woman identified as Bethany Ann Bernatsky, 46, of Nisswa, the release says.
She had been shot multiple times and was dead at the scene, according to the release.
On Tuesday, Crow Wing County Sheriff Scott Goddard said “one of the scenarios that we are working on” is that Moser actually intended to shoot the 26-year-old daughter of the former owner of the resort, theStar Tribunereports.
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The week before the shooting, Bret Jevning said Moser had come to the RV park he owns across the street from the resort, looking for his daughter.
On the night of the shooting, Moser was “mistaking (the victim) for my daughter,” Jevning told theStar Tribune.
Bernatsky and Moser’s ex-girlfriend looked alike, according to her brother. “They have the same body structure, height and hair color,” Bernatsky’s brother, Ben Bernatsky, told theStar Tribune, alleging that he “killed the wrong person.”
A renowned former horse trainer, Bernatsky grew up in the Brainerd Lakes area and had just moved back from Vermont for the winter, her brother told theStar Tribune.
“She was a savant in the horse world,” her brother said.
Moser has since been charged with second-degree intentional murder.
He remains held on $1 million bail. He is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 20.
It is unclear whether he has retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.
The Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment, and a representative from the Crow Wing County District Court did not immediately return PEOPLE’s call for information.
As Moser awaits his next court date, Bernatsky’s family and friends are mourning her loss.
source: people.com
