The horrible scene in Platte, South Dakota has an entire community in grief and disbelief. It’s believed that Scott Westerhuis shot and killed his wife and their four children, then set his home on fire and shot himself. Westerhuis reportedly worked with his wife, Nicole, at the Mid-Central Educational Cooperative in Platte, a town of about 1,200 people where everyone knew each other.
Financial ruin is now the suspected cause of the father’s horrifying act. According to KELO-TV, the Mid-Central Educational Cooperative lost a $4.3 million contract the day before the fire. Mid-Central also had to pay back $214,000 to the state for grant money it couldn’t account for. Westerhuis worked as Cooperative’s business manager, according to the website.