[GRAPHIC CONTENT] Remembering These Gruesome Bismarck Murders

Over the weekend, I stumbled across a disturbing documentary. Just blocks away from where I shop is a house where murderers once lived.

You don’t hear about murder in Bismarck, North Dakota a lot, but when you do shakes you to your core.

The documentary was called "The House on Sweet and Seventh;" you can watch it on Tubi.

I watched the film, and couldn't help but wonder, how I had never heard of this awful event.

The Story

If you haven’t heard about this gruesome story, I’ll tell you. Keep in mind this isn’t for children, nor the faint of heart.

In Bismarck, in 1998 Barbara and Gordon Erickstad were stabbed to death in their home at 245 Laredo Dr.

It was a terrible scene; tables overturned, blood on the floors and walls, and papers scattered everywhere.

Investigators at the scene could tell this was a fatal incident, but couldn't locate any bodies at the scene.

Finding The Murderers

The Bismarck Police Department acted on a hunch that the individuals who lived in the house on Seventh and Sweet were involved in the crime.

The house was a place where many teens and bad characters would hang out, drink, do drugs, and evade authorities.

It was discovered shortly after the crime, three individuals were directly involved, and several others indirectly.

The Arrest

After questioning several others that lived in the house on Seventh and Sweet, police found that 18-year-old Brian Erickstad and 27-year-old Robert Lawrence were found to be the perpetrators. They were arrested in Texas and brought back to North Dakota for questioning.

CORRECTION: Aimee Werner was mentioned in an earlier version of this post as being the driver. This information was incorrect, and has been updated/removed.

You may have put it together already, but what makes this crime worse is that the victims were murdered by their own son, and his friend.

The victim's bodies were found 52 miles south of Bismarck, off of Highway 6; they were dumped in a tree row.

To this date, a motive has never been determined. Both Erickstad and Lawrence are currently being held in the North Dakota State Penitentiary. 

 If you're interested, you can watch the full documentary here. 

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