Officials with the Sioux Falls Police Department have identified the victims and suspect in a triple homicide from the weekend.
Justin Cody Rackley, 30, of Sioux Falls, was booked Saturday night into the Minnehaha County Jail on three counts of first degree murder, Lt. Aaron Nyberg said during the daily police briefing with media Monday morning. Rackley pleaded not guilty to all three charges during his first court appearance Monday morning in Lincoln County, according to South Dakota Unified Judicial System's online database of court records.
The victims included Daniel Carl Kemnitz, 43, Kellie E. Reaves, 43, and Michael A. Thompson, 34, all of Sioux Falls, the police department announced.
The triple homicide occured in the early hours of Saturday morning. Officers responded at about 2:45 a.m. to a home in the area of South Drexel Drive and West 58th Street for a disturbance, which was within Sioux Falls city limits and in Lincoln County's border, a press release from the department stated Saturday.
When officers arrived, they found three adults deceased on scene of apparent gunshot wounds, and two other victims with non-life threatening injuries. They were taken to an area hospital for treatment, the release states. The names of those two other victims have not been released.
"We're still investigating as far as determining the relationship and motive between the suspect and victims," Nyberg said. "It's probably too early to speak definitively about the motive because interviews are still being done on people who were at the scene."
More:Sioux Falls Police investigating triple homicide; suspect in custody
Nyberg estimated at least a dozen people were at the home the night before and early morning, gathering around a bonfire or fire pit at the time. Some left when the chaos unfolded, but not all, Nyberg explained. Children were also in the home, but were sleeping at the time and not involved, he said.
Alcohol was consumed during the gathering, but it's unclear what role that may have played during the incident at this time, he said.
He couldn't say how many shots were fired during the incident, because the scene was still being processed. However, neighbors Angela and Joe Windstead, who live next door to the home, told the Argus Leader on Saturday afternoon their internal cameras caught the sound of 16 shots, three of which were muffled. They turned the footage and audio over to police, they said.
Autopsies are anticipated for the victims later this week, and that will provide more clarity, Nyberg said. He confirmed the department was also using camera footage from surrounding homes to assist in the investigation.
Friday night, Joe Winstead said he saw his neighbors sitting out around a fire at about 9 p.m. at the house that's now a crime scene.
"They were out there most of the night," he said. "I know I got up once or twice in the middle of the night to use the restroom, and they were still out there. But like this morning, we went out front, and there are two vehicles that were there that we've never, ever seen there before."
The Winsteads said they've known their next door neighbors for about seven years.
"She's a wonderful gal, with a wonderful man," Angela Winstead said Saturday afternoon of Reaves. "We've had absolutely zero issues. She's the one neighbor we clicked with, and she's the only other neighbor on our block that was really our age when we moved in."
Nyberg said the incident does not appear to be a crime of passion or a robbery.
"That's why we're trying to track down anybody that was there at the time that it happened to see if we can't flesh out some more information," he said.
Officers were out at the home processing the scene for evidence until the evening hours Saturday, Nyberg said.
Sioux Falls Police Chief Jon Thum thanked the officers who responded to the scene, given the chaos, the number of people injured or killed and the fact the suspect was still on scene.
"The professionalism of our department, and witnessing this on full display, I'm very, very proud of our team and how they responded to that incident," Thum said. "Our condolences go to the families who lost loved ones. Obviously, the loss of life was senseless. We're confident in our abilities to investigate this case to the fullest and work with our partners at the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office to make sure we put a comprehensive picture together."
The last time Sioux Falls had a homicide that involved three or more victims was 1973, when a family was found deceased in their home, Nyberg said. There were four victims, and the suspect took their own life, he said.
