Bizarre Crime: Man blamed wife's death on fallen totem pole

Thursday, June 9, 2011  

A Minnesota man who said his wife died after a totem pole fell on her has now been charged with murder.

Carl Muggli, 49, said his wife, Linda, was crushed by a 17-foot-tall totem pole they were working on last November. His story unraveled after investigators were unable to replicate the fall and after an affair with another woman came to light.

Muggli was arrested in Texas. He will be extradited to Minnesota to face second-degree-murder charges.

Get the Story:
Death by totem pole turns into a murder case against husband (The Minneapolis Star Tribune 6/9)
Princess Diana totem pole builder 'murdered wife by dropping 1.5 ton pole on her after plotting new life with mistress' (The Daily Mail 6/8)