True Crime
Man charged in shooting of Minnehaha County deputy Katherine Frank, who died three days later.
Brandon John Oetken, 39, of Sioux Falls, faces three counts of attempted first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer and three counts of aggravated assault against a law enforcement officer. Deputy Katherine Frank, 26, was shot Friday, Oct. 9, while deputies tried to serve a mental illness hold at his home. She died Monday, Oct. 12. Dakota News Now, Sioux Falls Live, and Fox News reported stronger charges are expected.
By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer ·
The counts on file were written while Deputy Frank was still alive. Her death on Monday is why Sioux Falls Live reported upgraded charges are expected, which could include first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer. That count carries a mandatory life sentence and a possible death sentence in South Dakota. For now, the filed charges are attempted murder and aggravated assault. A charge is not a conviction.
Brandon John Oetken, 39, of Sioux Falls, S.D., was booked into the Minnehaha County Jail shortly after 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, after being released from a hospital, Sioux Falls Live reported. Minnehaha County State's Attorney Daniel Haggar has charged him with three counts of attempted first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer and three counts of aggravated assault against a law enforcement officer, Dakota News Now and Sioux Falls Live reported. Fox News reported jail records also list a felony count of disarming a law enforcement officer, and that he is held without bond.
Court documents filed Oct. 10 say three Minnehaha County sheriff's deputies, including Katherine Frank, went to Oetken's home in western Sioux Falls on the evening of Friday, Oct. 9, to serve a mental illness hold, Dakota News Now reported. A witness told investigators Oetken recognized them as police. The documents say he retreated into the home while talking with the deputies, and they followed him to keep contact. As the deputies stood close together in the entryway, Oetken allegedly produced a handgun and pointed it at them. As they backed away, he allegedly fired and struck Frank at close range. Another deputy returned fire and hit Oetken several times. Sioux Falls Live reported the shots came more than 30 minutes after deputies first arrived. Dakota News Now reported state Division of Criminal Investigation agents have reviewed body-camera footage.
Frank, 26, spent three days in critical condition and died Monday, Oct. 12, at a Sioux Falls hospital, surrounded by family, the sheriff's office said, according to Fox News and SDPB. The sheriff's office said she became an organ donor. Officers lined Sioux Falls streets Tuesday to honor her, Sioux Falls Live reported, and memorials have been set up while funeral plans are pending.
Sioux Falls Live reported that additional, stronger charges are expected in the coming days because of Frank's death. The sheriff's office has said it considers the shooting premeditated, which could open the door to a first-degree murder of law enforcement charge. A conviction on that count carries a minimum of life in prison without parole and a maximum of death. Fox News reported that Attorney General Marty Jackley said investigators will review the use of force in the encounter, with a public report expected within 30 days. The attorney general's office said it was the fifth shooting involving law enforcement officers in South Dakota this year. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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