Eric Reinbold sentenced to 40 years in slaying of wife

PENNINGTON COUNTY, M.N. (Valley News Live) - A Minnesota man will spend the next four decades in prison for the brutal murder of his wife Lissette Reinbold outside their home in July 2021.

A jury found 46-year-old Eric Reinbold guilty of second-degree murder in Sept. 2022 after less than four hours of deliberations.

First responders were called to the Reinbold home at 10583 340th Ave. SE in Oklee, Minn. around 9:15 a.m. on July 9, 2021 for an unresponsive woman. When responders reached the driveway, court documents say the EMTs encountered a boy on a bike who told them his mom was laying on the ground and he was going to get his stepdad from his camper. Documents say Lissette had dirt on her face, stab wounds on her neck and near her jaw, and there was a cell phone wedged under a tire.

Document say another boy told investigators he last saw his mom the night before and when he woke up, he looked outside and saw his mom lying by the vehicle and saw her face and hands had blood on them, documents say.

When officers arrived, they learned that three children were also at Reinbold’s camper, which was located about a half mile from the home. Two of the children told officers they spent the night in the camper with Reinbold, but when they woke up on July 9, Reinbold was gone. The children say that they did not know where he went or where he could be. One of the children told investigators they last saw their mother crying because Reinbold accused her of being unfaithful, documents say.

Documents say investigators later searched through Reinbold’s phone and found tension-filled text messages between Lissette and Reinbold going back to March 2021. Court documents state on July 8, Lissette told him the constant texting and accusations were not good for their marriage. Lissette also reminded Reinbold that he punched and choked her in 2015.

Court documents say Reinbold later came to the home to take two of the children back with him to the camper, and there were not any other exchanges between the two after that.

A friend of Lissette told officers that Lissette sent a video via Facebook messenger at 6:36 a.m. on July 9. However, Lissette did not respond to any messages just over an hour later, documents say.

Reinbold successfully evaded police for three weeks, but was finally arrested in early August 2021 after he was spotted on a trail camera not far from his parent’s property.

Court records state Reinbold will get credit for the more than 500 days he’s been in jail, and he will also have to pay $8,790 in restitution to Lissette’s family.

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