PC: New York Post

Four persons who were discovered shot to death in a wheat field this week in North Dakota were identified by authorities on Wednesday.

They were named in a statement by Towner County Sheriff Andrew Hillier as Douglas Dulmage, 56; Justin Bracken, 34; Richard Bracken, 64; and Robert Bracken, 59.

Nearly 200 miles northeast of Bismarck, a.357 revolver was discovered at the scene, according to Hillier.

Hillier didn’t offer any more details about the incident or speculate on a potential motive. He claimed in a statement on Tuesday that the scene’s evidence pointed to the incident being a murder-suicide.

According to Fargo’s NBC station KVLY, Dulmage had hired the three guys to work on his farm and was slain while mixing wheat. According to Forum News Service of Fargo-Moorhead, one of the farmhands’ relatives went to check on him around 6 p.m. on Monday and found the bodies.

Pat Traynor, a longtime friend of Dulmage’s, told KVLY that his death was a “devastating loss.”

Traynor reportedly told the station, “He was a pillar of the community.” Doug Dulmage was well-liked by all.

Dulmage grew wheat, corn, and soybeans with his 95-year-old father at the land where he was slain, according to Traynor, who also spoke to the Associated Press. Dulmage resided in Leeds, about 14 miles away, with his wife and daughter.

Harvest equipment remains on scene in Towner County at the site of where four people were killed in a reported murder-suicide.
Image Source: Grand Forks Herald

According to family members quoted by KVLY, one of the men killed Dulmage, his brother, and his son during an argument before taking his own life. Justin Bracken is listed as Robert Bracken’s son in public records.

The ex-wife of Robert Bracken, who could only be reached via phone, claimed that her ex-husband “didn’t have a mean bone in his body.”

She added that she will wait for a police report on the incident before making any further comments, saying, “We need time to understand this.”