Updated at 2:46 p.m. Nov. 17, 2023
BEMIDJI — Two brothers face charges relating to the death of their younger brother, which authorities say was a result of blunt force trauma.
Criminal complaints filed Thursday, Nov. 16, detail Bemidji Police officers' response to a residence near downtown Aug. 12, two days after the assault that killed 31-year-old Jared Eason.
The victim’s older brother, 40-year-old Joseph Eason, has been in custody since Sept. 16 on an unrelated charge. But the complaint against the elder Eason accuses him of committing an assault violent enough to kill his younger brother on Aug. 10.
Daniel Eason, 36, was also charged Thursday with aiding an offender after the fact.
In the early days of the investigation, Joseph Eason told officers he and Daniel Eason were at Jared’s Bemidji home when four unnamed assailants began fighting. The elder Eason also said he had been drinking to the point of "blacking out" and woke up in another residence the next morning.
In a statement to officers, Daniel Eason claimed he also was drinking and impaired but recalled going downstairs and witnessing the four unknown assailants fighting his brothers. Daniel claimed to have then removed Joseph, "apparently leaving Jared to deal with the four unidentified assailants," read the complaint.
The investigation of the crime scene showed blood evidence of three Eason brothers. The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension forensic scientist found no other DNA evidence suggesting any other people were present in the home the night Jared Eason died.
Further investigation found that Joseph and Jared Eason had a history of engaging in brawls or fistfights with each other.
