Ex-boyfriend charged in death of Rose Downwind
Two men have been charged in the death and disappearance of Rose Downwind, the woman whose face is printed on missing posters all over Bemidji.
Nearly two months after Downwind was first reported missing, her ex-boyfriend, 40-year-old Marchello Anthony Cimmarusti appeared in District Court in Bemidji Friday to face second degree murder charges.
Brandon Joseph Rossbach, 31, was also arraigned Friday. He was charged with aiding an offender for his role in disposing of Downwind's body.
The charges come just two days after Cimmarusti turned himself in to Bemidji Police and confessed to killing Downwind.
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.
Downwind is the granddaughter of American Indian Movement co-founder Dennis Banks. Many of her family members gathered in the courtroom Friday to hear the charges read.
According to the criminal complaint, the former boyfriend told police he didn't intend to kill Downwind, but that an argument got out of control.
Downwind had a no-contact order against Cimmarusti following a recent domestic assault charge. On Oct. 20, Downwind met Cimmarusti on the steps of his home in Bemidji, where they once raised five children.
Downwind was angry, Cimmarusti said. She was taking video with her phone to prove he was violating the no-contact order. He tried to take the phone from her. They struggled and he pushed her down the stairs.
Her head hit the wooden landing at the bottom of the stairs, he said, and blood ran from the corner of her mouth. He checked for a pulse and found none. According to a statement Cimmarusti gave to the police, he did not attempt CPR. Instead he dragged the body to his basement and called a friend from St. Paul for help.
There is a warrant out for the arrest of Cimmarusti's St. Paul friend, but he is not currently in custody to face charges.
The three men brought a tank of gas with them according to court paperwork, and stopped to buy foam bowls. Security footage from the night shows them leaving the Bemidji Walmart after midnight on Oct. 21.
The criminal complaint also says Cimmarusti's St. Paul friend used a phone to search "how hot does a fire have to be to burn through bone." Gasoline and styrofoam can be mixed to make a flammable substance that sticks to skin.
Cimmarusti told police he loaded Downwind's body into the SUV with Rossback and the friend. They drove north together on Highway 89, turning down a remote ATV trail.
Investigators say the men dug a grave, then poured gasoline over the body and the styrofoam bowls, letting the fire burn for several hours before covering the grave. Investigators found the heat had charred the bark of nearby trees.
Bemidji Police, the FBI, the Minnesota BCA and a handful of other local law enforcement agencies searched for Downwind for 50 straight days after her disappearance. Bemidji Police Chief Mike Mastin said their first break came when Cimmarusti confessed.
Cimmarusti led investigators to the shallow grave northwest of Bemidji Wednesday night.
Cimmarusti's bail has been set at $1 million. Rossbach is currently on probation for two felony convictions and is being held without bail.