Baldwin couple slain in Missouri

GALENA, Mo. (WOOD) - Two teens who ran away from a ranch for troubled youth are being held in the slaying of a couple from Baldwin at a home in Missouri.

Paul Brooks, 70, and his 69-year-old wife Margaret Brooks were found dead Thursday night at a home in the Trace Hollow area, south of Table Rock Lake in Missouri, the sheriff of Stone County confirmed .

Sheriff Doug Rader said a 15- and 16-year-old are being held in the killings.

Investigators believe the teens broke into an unoccupied home next door to the Brooks and stayed for several days, reports KY3, the NBC affiliate in Springfield, Missouri . Rader did not say how the couple died, nor how long they may have been dead.

Stone County deputies responded to a burglary call at 1720 Trace Hollow Road and found a neighbor holding the teens at gunpoint. Deputies then discovered the bodies.

The teens ran away from Lives Under Construction, a boys ranch for troubled teens in Lampe, Missouri. The ranch in the Ozark Mountains describes itself as a Christian residential treatment program. "Through the use of Biblical counseling and applying Christian principles in their lives, we are re-building broken homes and family relationships," their website states.

Richard Bottorf, the chairman of the board of the program, told 24 Hour News 8 the boys were residents and turned up missing a few days before the killings. They were reported as missing, he said.

"While I cannot address all the specific questions pertaining to the two boys in custody - I can tell you that LUC has been in operation for 30 years, has had over 350 boys go through the program and has seen God work tremendous miracles in the lives of our boys," Bottorf said in a statement.

For the past seven years, Paul and Margaret Brooks lived in Baldwin. Originally from Windsor, Ontario, they moved to Baldwin from the Detroit area to get away from the violence of the city, according to reports in Missouri.

A neighbor of theirs in Baldwin told 24 Hour News 8 the couple enjoyed life and had many friends. Margaret, known as Sue to her friends, and Paul enjoyed walking their dog.

Their son, a local surgeon, owned the home in Missouri where the couple was staying. Their neighbor said the couple would spend their winters in Missouri and their summers in Baldwin.

They have two other children in Michigan.

An autopsy is set for Saturday to determine how they died.

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The Brooks' family provided this statement to 24 Hour News 8 Sunday:

It is with great sadness and profound sorrow that we acknowledge the death of our parents, Brian and Susan Brooks.  This was a senseless act of violence carried out upon a defenseless , loving couple.  Their lives were tragically cut short a few months before their 50th wedding anniversary.

Yet in this truly difficult time, we see evidence of God’s abundant grace and have many things to be thankful for.  We wish to thank the members of the Stone County Sheriff’s Office, especially Sheriff Rader, for the kindness and compassion shown to our family.  We appreciate the professionalism and attention to detail of this department, that of Prosecutor Matt Selby, and Coroner Rick Stumpff, to ensure that the individuals that have committed these crimes are prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

We wish to thank the heroes that choose to remain nameless, but to whom we will be forever indebted, for calling the authorities and apprehending the suspects.  We can never say thank you enough.

Last but not least, we wish to thank the tremendous outpouring of love and kindness by each of our communities scattered about the country. Your expressions of kindness are too numerous to mention but confirm for us the importance of relationships and community. We are humbled and blessed.

Sincerely,
The family of Brian and Susan Brooks