Following his son-in-law’s murder-suicide of his daughter and two grandkids, a distraught father has described the moment he found their dead.
The Koch family from Nebraska was discovered dead on the day of their oldest son’s high school graduation, according to shocking reports that surfaced earlier this week. The murder-suicide is thought to have been committed by 42-year-old Jeremy Koch, who reportedly had a lengthy and problematic history with mental health issues.
At approximately 9:45 a.m. on May 10, the Dawson County Sheriff’s Office made a visit to the Koch residence. The bodies of Jeremy, his wife Bailey Koch, 41, and their two boys, Hudson, 18, and Asher, 16, were discovered there.
According to family members, Jeremy’s mental health problems began at least in 2009 and included several suicide attempts.
The bodies of Bailey’s daughter, grandsons, and son-in-law were found on Saturday morning, according to an open letter posted on social media by Bailey’s father, Lane Kugler.
He said that he is “so angry” about the alleged murder-suicide and the unsuccessful attempts to assist Jeremy, saying, “What I saw will haunt me for the rest of my life.”
Kugler went on to say, “Jeremy had been battling mental illness for many, many years.” “His madness had developed from his depression. This terrible deed was not Jeremy’s doing. A sick mind was at play.
“Bailey worked so hard to help him, and she and her sons lived in fear of losing their father and her husband to mental illness for many years,” he continued. They had no idea when he might be unable to operate normally due to a manic condition (very high) or a severe case of depression (extremely low).
Bailey put a lot of effort into raising awareness of people in need. She was an outspoken supporter of mental health. She devoted numerous hours to their Anchoring Hope for Mental Health: Jeremy & Bailey Koch Facebook page.
Bailey made a last-ditch internet appeal for people to help her husband only days before the murder-suicide that has made headlines worldwide. She created a GoFundMe page earlier this month with the message, “May is mental health awareness month, so here we are…making you aware.”
Bailey wrote as recently as May 3 that her husband was receiving ongoing treatment to support his mental health and had survived at least four suicide attempts.
In March 2025, however, she claimed to have woken up to her husband standing over her brandishing a knife and stating, “Something is wrong.” She was successful in defusing the situation and persuading him to get help that time.
On May 3, Jeremy was diagnosed with acute malnutrition and dehydration, and on May 8, he was discharged from hospital inpatient treatment.
Bailey expressed her happiness that Jeremy will return home in time for their oldest son Hudson’s high school graduation in a social media post on her and her husband’s Facebook page.
Sadly, shortly after police were called to the family’s residence, they found Bailey and her two sons dead stabbed.
