Suspect in double Ashland homicide held on $1M bond

Wausau Pilot & Review

Two people are dead and a person of interest is in custody after a shooting in the northern Wisconsin community of Ashland this week.

The shooting happened after an apparent disagreement at a local tavern and was reported after 2 a.m. Oct. 14 when a witness called 911, according to an Ashland Daily Press report. When police arrived, they discovered two men lying in the alley. Both men were dead of apparent gunshot wounds, police said.

Nathan “Freddie” Monkelien, 35, was arrested near the scene. He faces two counts of first-degree intentional homicide in connection with the shootings. Ashland County Circuit Court Judge Kelly McKnight on Monday ordered Monkelien, who faces mandatory life in prison if convicted, held on $1 million cash bond.

According to the APG report, Special Prosecutor David Meany told McKnight that “the evidence laid out in the affidavit (supporting the charges) is strong,” and includes video of Monkelien leaving the scene with a gun, accounts of him fleeing police and resisting arrest and evidence that he had amphetamines in his blood when taken into custody.

The owners of Taqueria La Monarca, a restaurant adjacent to the shooting scene, identified the victims as Manuel and Luis Garcia of Vera Cruz, Mexico, and said on social media that they were in town visiting their brother Ricardo at La Monarcha.

Monkelien co-owns the Stagecoach Bar & Grill, next door to La Monarca and behind which the shooting took place.

He also is on prescription medication that “sometimes shows up as amphetamines” in tests, the APG report reads. Monkelien allegedly said he was defending himself from an attempted armed robbery when he shot the victims.

The owners of Taqueria La Monarca posted on their social media account that the two victims were part of the restaurant’s extended family.

“Two members of our extended La Monarca family were the tragic victims of this incident. The gunman, however, was in no way connected with us,” the post read. “This was not a ‘fight between Mexicans’ or a ‘drug deal gone bad,’ but rather two selfless men in the wrong place, at the wrong time, trying to help a stranger.

This is an ongoing investigation in coordination with the Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigation, the Wisconsin State Crime Lab, and the Wisconsin State Patrol. No names have been released.