Melissa Nicole Hunt, 36, of Kellogg, Minnesota, was found critically injured after driving into a homeowner’s driveway in Wabasha County on June 18, 2025. Deputies recorded catastrophic facial trauma—several missing teeth and part of her jaw—and she told first responders that her ex-boyfriend, 44-year-old Craig Alan Hameister of Rochester, had struck her with a stick near a rural boat launch outside Kellogg. She was taken to Gundersen – St. Elizabeth Hospital in Wabasha and later died of her injuries that day.

Forensic testing later detected gunshot residue in at least one wound, and investigators conducted a manhunt that ended when Hameister was found hiding up in a tree east of Rochester and taken into custody. Prosecutors charged him with two counts of second-degree murder; a judge set bail at $2 million. Public memorials and obituaries identify Hunt as a mother, daughter, and friend and confirm her death on June 18, 2025.

The charging documents and news accounts center on the attack at or near the Kellogg-area boat launch and on Hunt’s identification of Hameister before she died. No other suspects have been publicly named. If anyone knew Melissa, frequented the Kellogg boat launch, or has information about the events that night, please come forward with what was seen or heard.