Staples Man Charged with Criminal Vehicular Homicide After Crash with Motorcycle

Russell Ekholm (Credit: Wadena County Sheriff’s Office)

A 52-year-old Staples man has been charged with three counts of criminal vehicular homicide after a collision involving his pickup truck and a motorcycle that resulted in the death of the driver of the motorcycle.

Russell Ekholm was charged today with those felonies plus two counts of DWI after he tested at .099 on a breathalyzer test following the collision.

The crash happened Saturday night around 9:30 in Thomastown Township, located northwest of Staples, on County Road 2. Ekholm reportedly told investigators that he slowed down to avoid a deer, and that the motorcycle driven by 52-year-old Keith Shultz of Wadena struck the back of his pickup.

Shultz was not wearing a helmet and suffered serious head injuries from the crash. He was taken to a St. Cloud hospital, where he died the following afternoon.

Shultz is reported as having had a small bag of methamphetamine in his possession at the time of the crash.

Ekholm was scheduled to make his first court appearance in Wadena County Court today and next has a Rule 8 hearing set for September 9th. Bail was set at $300,000 without conditions or $10,000 with conditions.