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BIG SKY, Mont. — The last time anyone heard from Dustin Kjersem was the afternoon of Oct. 10, when he climbed into his black Ford F-150 and headed to a remote campsite in the Montana wilderness.
He had made plans to meet a friend the next day for a weekend of camping and other outdoor activities. When he didn't show up, his friend went looking for him — and made a gruesome discovery.
On Saturday morning, the friend called 911 and said he'd found Kjersem's bloodied body in a tent about two-and-a-half miles up Moose Creek Road, east of Big Sky. He told the dispatcher that Kjersem appeared to be a victim of a bear attack.
But authorities are now saying they think Kjersem was murdered.
An autopsy determined the 35-year-old suffered "multiple chop wounds," sheriff's deputies say. And they're urging anyone with information to come forward.
"This is a homicide, and we are working all hours of the day and night to find his killer," Gallatin County Sheriff Dan Springer said at a news conference Wednesday.
"He was brutally killed at his campsite. And we need your help," Springer added. "So if you're out in the woods, you need to remain vigilant."
Kjersem was found in a rugged area with little cellphone service
Kjersem was a gifted builder and hard-working handyman who could pour foundations, frame houses and install countertops, said his sister, Jillian Price.
She implored anyone with information to help find her sibling's killer.
"This weekend, we lost our brother, our son, our uncle, our best friend and our dad in the most unimaginable way," she said at the news conference, her voice cracking. "He was a loving, helpful and adoring father who in no way deserved this."
Though remote, the Moose Creek area is a popular spot among hunters and campers. Kjersem's body was discovered on U.S. Forest Service land east of Highway 191, authorities said.
Authorities don't have much information to go on. The area of the crime scene has spotty or no cellphone service, complicating the investigation, Springer said.
"People have asked me if there's a threat to the community and the answer is, we don't know. We don't have enough information to know at this time," he said.
Investigators hope someone will come forward with crucial camera imagery or other details that will help determine what happened.
"It's like a big jigsaw puzzle," Springer said. "When you're working on these cases, you will get little pieces here and there and eventually that creates a big, large picture that makes some sense."
Investigators are examining a key 2-day window
Kjersem left his home in Belgrade, Montana, last Thursday in his truck, which has a black topper and a silver aluminum ladder rack, authorities said. He last contacted his family that afternoon, then he went quiet.
He had brought lots of equipment for his weekend outdoors, authorities said. Kjersem's friend, who authorities did not identify, told them he found his body around 10 a.m. Saturday.
After the 911 call, investigators from several agencies, including a bear expert from the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks, examined the site but did not find any signs of bear activity.
Springer said investigators don't know what weapon was used, "but we do know it was something hard enough to cause significant damage to the skull as well as some flesh areas of the body."
Investigators are seeking information from anyone who was in the area between Thursday and Saturday.
"Anyone with trail or game cameras in the Moose Creek area, please reach forward, even if the footage seems irrelevant," Sheriff's Capt. Nathan Kamerman said.
"Anyone with in-car cameras traveling in the Moose Creek area during this time frame … anyone who saw the victim's truck," he added. "Anyone who saw something out of place, out of the ordinary in the area … please reach out to us."
Investigators are following up on multiple leads, he said.
Western Montana is bear country. In July, a 72-year-old man fatally shot a grizzly bear that attacked him while he was picking huckleberries near Glacier National Park. The bear charged at the man, who was hospitalized with injuries.
Investigators have not determined Kjersem's time of death and have not made any arrests.
"Please help us find out who did this," his sister told reporters. "There is someone in our valley who is capable of truly heinous things."
