Nightmarish murder weapon husband used to kill his mom, wife and his seven-year-old daughter before taking his own life at daycare amid marriage woes

By WILL POTTER, US SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Published: 13:40, 14 August 2026 | Updated: 13:42, 14 August 2026 A Minnesota husband who killed his wife, mom and seven-year-old daughter in a murder suicide used a screwdriver to carry out the massacre, it has been revealed.  Nathan Brown, 41, murdered his wife Kristen Ann Brown, 41, and their daughter Evie at their family-run children's daycare at their home Hopkins, Minnesota on Wednesday.  He is believed to have first killed his 78-year-old mother, Alice Anne Brown, at her home in Burnsville before continuing the bloodbath at his wife's daycare, Brown Bear Childcare, which was run out of the couple's basement.  Brown fatally stabbed Kristen and their daughter with a screwdriver, committing the murders in front of at least six traumatized children, police said.  Police said a man dropping his children off at the daycare at around 9am reported he could hear screaming as he approached the building, according to an affidavit reported by the Twin Cities Pioneer Press.  The witness said he went inside and saw Nathan on top of his wife, and said it 'initially looked like Nathan was giving Kristen CPR', he told police.  'He then noted Nathan had a screwdriver in his hand and was actively stabbing Kristen,' the affidavit said.  After committing the brutal triple murders, Brown then took his own life with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.  Kristen Ann Brown, 41, and her daughter Evie were fatally stabbed with a screwdriver in a horror murder-suicide in Hopkins, Minnesota, police say  Nathan Brown, 41, brutally murdered his own mother, his wife and daughter in a killing spree before taking his own life with a self-inflicted gunshot wound  Nathan Brown is believed to have first killed his 78-year-old mother, Alice Anne Brown, at her home in Burnsville where he had been living, before continuing his attack on his wife and child The man who witnessed Brown stabbing his wife to death said at least six children watched on inside the daycare, before he hurried them outside and he called 911. None of the other children were harmed.   By the time police arrived, Brown's wife and daughter were found dead together inside, and Brown was deceased nearby.  Brown, a landscaper with his own business in the Minneapolis area, is believed to have committed the heinous murder-suicide due to the breakdown of his marriage.  Shortly before the killings, Kristen sent a letter to parents of her daycare telling them she would be closing the business, citing 'relationship issues' with her husband.   A friend of Kristen who had a child in her daycare also claimed that something seemed 'off' in the family with potential ongoing abuse, according to FOX9. Kristen sent a text to the friend around 8.45am on Wednesday, explaining that ‘things were crazy’ and adding that Brown Bear Childcare would be closed as of August 27, per the report. The friend, who did not give her name, said that Kristen told her she was planning on leaving her husband imminently, so she could not continue running the daycare out of their basement.  Nathan had been living in his mother Alice's home at the time, and he is believed to have first murdered his mother before moving on to his wife's daycare. A significant police presence was seen outside the daycare in Hopkins, Minnesota after the family massacre on Wednesday  Shortly before the killings, Kristen sent a letter to parents of her daycare telling them she would be closing the business, citing 'relationship issues' with her husband Kristen was a mom-of-one who told her friends and clients that she realized 'early on' that she loved working with children and watching them grow. After having her own daughter in 2019, Kristen became convinced that the time was right to focus on childcare – and she opened Brown Bear Childcare from their home. She wrote at the time: 'I plan to take all the skills that I have learned in my journey and use them help my daughter and those children (who will hopefully become life-long friends) blossom into happy, intelligent, caring individuals.' As well as opening the daycare where she looked after six kids a day, Kristen helped raise money for children's hospitals and frequently posted lovingly about her own daughter.  Kristen, originally from Miller, South Dakota, said she had graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2010 with a bachelor's degree in elementary education foundations. Kristen said she began babysitting when she was 10, which she did every weekend until she was 14. She also worked in her mother's family childcare center when she turned 12. 'No matter what other jobs I held, I always wound up back working with kids,' Kristen wrote. Kristen was a mom-of-one who told her friends and clients that she realized 'early on' that she loved working with children and watching them grow The Brown Bear Daycare (above) was run out of the family's basement  The mother noted that she had her own 'home daycare' in South Dakota, but that she had been working as a certified optometric vision therapist in the four years before starting the Brown Bear daycare. 'In October 2018, I had my own child,' Kristen wrote. 'As much as I loved my previous positions, I believe that it is time to return to child care so that I can be home with her.' Kristen explained that children at her daycare learned 'through organized activities as well as play.' 'As the child grows, we work on language, motor skills, encouraging curiosity and problem solving,' she posted. She also said the daycare also offered weekly music and cooking classes, as well as quarterly field trips, in order to 'provide a well-rounded experience' for the kids. That October, the daycare posted about a 'fabulous day filled with fun, family and friends' at the Fall Harvest Orchard, alongside pictures of several children smiling and playing. 'We picked apples, fed animals, played on all sorts of games and rides and, of course, the long awaited corn pit!' the post said. Other lighthearted days organized by the daycare included 'Unicorn Day' or 'Rainbow Day.'