Levi Axtell, a Minnesota dad incensed by what he believed to be the stalking of his daughter, took justice into his own hands. He confronted 77-year-old Lawrence Scully – an accused sex offender – with moose antlers and a shovel as weapons before brutally bashing him to death. After meeting out deadly retribution for an alleged crime against his child, Axtell came forward covered in blood at the sheriff’s office and turned himself in for murder.
With a track record of preying on little girls, it was no surprise when Scully violated the innocence of a 6-year-old in 1979. Axtell remained suspiciously vigilant and closely observed 77-year old Scully’s vehicle parked around areas with numerous children – including his own daughter. Fearing for her safety, he took matters into his own hands by violently attacking and ultimately ending the sex offender’s life.
Alarmed by the prospect of his young daughter falling victim to Scully, an infamous sex offender from Cook County, Minnesota, Axtell took action and filed for a protective order against him in 2018. Initially approved by authorities, this decision was eventually reversed without any explanation provided.
In 2020, Scully was admitted to a mental health facility and then released after being given antipsychotic medication.
On Friday, Axtell was charged with a criminal offense for the brutal murder of Scully in his apartment. He allegedly struck him repeatedly with a shovel before “finishing” the attack using an enormous moose antler. During this horrendous assault, Axtell is said to have also caused destruction to Scully’s vehicle.
At 4:45 pm, Axtell allegedly broke into Scully’s home and seized a shovel from the elderly man’s deck. Then, Axtell is accused of brutally attacking the sexual offender fifteen to twenty times with the object before finalizing his murderous act by striking him with an immense moose antler he plucked from inside the premises.
“Defendant said he had known (Scully) for a long time and believed him to have sexually offended against children in the past,” the criminal complaint read. “Defendant said he had observed (Scully) parked in his vehicle at locations where children were present and believed he would re-offend.”
On Wednesday, a Cook County Sheriff’s Deputy discovered the deceased body of Scully in his residence. The elderly man was “surrounded by blood” and had suffered “major head trauma” from an apparent attack. It was clear to the deputy that he was “obviously dead” as a result of his injuries.
After the grisly scene of the murder, Axtell marched to the sheriff’s office with a heavy heart. He hung his head in guilt as he solemnly confessed to ending the life of an infamous sex offender.
In the 1970s, 33-year-old Scully was convicted of molesting a 6-year-old in Minnesota. Despite his past wrongdoings, he filed himself as a candidate for mayor of Grand Marais by 2014 – yet four years later faced further allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior involving minors.
