Man convicted of killing his daughter’s boyfriend sentenced to life in prison

A Brainerd man will be spending the rest of his life in prison – without a chance for parole – for murdering his daughter’s 23-year-old boyfriend, according to court documents.

Michael Lee Laflex, 46, was given the sentence on Monday. The decision came after Laflex was found guilty by a jury of both first and second-degree murder in Crow Wing County Court this past April. While being found guilty on both charges, Laflex was only sentenced on the first-degree murder charge.

Laflex was charged for the death of Bryce Brogel, who was shot in the back of the head at a storage unit in October 2022.

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Laflex believed Brogel had been abusing his daughter, who was dating Brogel at the time.

During the investigation, the Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office got a call from the landlord of Brogle and his girlfriend, according to court documents. The landlord said that Laflex called and asked if Brogle had hurt his daughter.

When the landlord said he had seen Laflex’s daughter with two black eyes, Laflex said he was going to kill Brogle and that he already had the hole dug, the complaint said.