According to a press release from the Washington County Sheriff's Office and the Hastings Police Department, officials have updated details on the body that was found on the morning of Feb. 2.
The Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office has identified a man found deceased on Feb. 2 in Hastings as William Michael “Ike” Eickholt, age 74, of Denmark Township. Eickholt was identified after the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension made a DNA match to one of Eickholt’s family members, and through supporting evidence including security camera images and personal effects.
Eickholt was found on the side of the road in the 1300 block of Ravenna Trail (10th Street). His cause and manner of death remain under investigation by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office. Eickholt had been identified as missing on Feb. 1 when investigators responded to multiple fires at his Denmark Township property.
Mitch Carmody, a local author, had befriended Eickholt after regularly seeing him walking along the road in the mornings.
"I would see him every Thursday around 7:30 a.m., always walking, wearing colorful, outlandish outfits," Carmody said. "He was a kind soul, and we talked a few times. I even gave him a book I wrote. He had an interesting life, but we never got the chance to truly sit down and talk about it before he passed."
Carmody recalled the struggles Eickholt faced, especially after his house burned down in July of 2024. "I reached out to a local journalist because I was worried about him," Carmody explained. "He was living out of his truck, hanging his clothes on trees, cooking on a small Coleman stove. I thought, ‘What is he going to do when winter comes?’ But he always reassured me, saying, ‘I have options.’"
The details surrounding Eickholt’s death have left many in the community unsettled.
"It’s hard not to think something nefarious happened," Carmody said. "His truck burned, his body was found miles away—it doesn’t add up." Authorities have yet to release an official cause of death, but they have ruled out fire-related injuries.
As the investigation continues, officials are asking the public for assistance:
• Residents and business owners in the areas surrounding 127th Street and Morgan Avenue between Manning Avenue/Highway 61 and St. Croix Trail South are asked to check their security cameras for anything suspicious between midnight on Saturday, Feb. 1, and 9:50 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 2.
• Anyone with information about Eickholt’s activities leading up to Feb. 1, information about the Feb. 1 fires at his property, or who witnessed a vehicle at or near the property on Jan. 31 or Feb. 1.
• Anyone who witnessed a vehicle at or near the 1300 block of Ravenna Trail between midnight on Feb. 1, and 9:50 a.m. on Feb. 2.
According to Commander Kyle Schenck of the Washington County Sheriff’s office, they do not believe the fire that occurred at Eickholt’s home in July and the fire that occurred with his truck on Feb. 1 are connected, but each are open and active investigations.
When asked about the death of Eickholt and if officials are looking at the death as a murder and/or a hate crime, he stated, “We are investigating any and all options in this case.”
Investigators ask that you contact the Hastings Police Department at 651-480-2300 or the Washington County Sheriff’s Office at 651-439-9381. No detail is too small to report.
Community members have expressed a desire to hold a celebration of life for Eickholt, though they are waiting for his family to make their arrangements first.
"So many people knew him in different ways," Carmody said. "Only now, after he’s gone, are we realizing just how much he touched the lives of those around him."