Iowa dad allegedly planned for a week how to kill his young son before strangling him

MARION, Iowa (TCN) -- A 45-year-old father was taken into custody this week for allegedly strangling his son to death after he had been planning how to kill him for a week.

According to the Cedar Rapids Gazette, on Tuesday, Oct. 29, just before 6 a.m., Marion Police Department officers received call about a young boy who "wasn’t breathing and was warm to the touch." Officers and paramedics arrived at the caller's house on Willowbrook Drive and transported the 5-year-old boy to a hospital, where he was pronounced deceased.

The boy's mother reportedly told police, "His dad strangled him."

Police asked the father, Matthew Schleier, if he killed his son Jack, and Schleier reportedly confirmed that he had.

The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports Schleier revealed he spent time "trying to decide" how to kill the preschooler and had been contemplating different methods for about a week. He allegedly initially wanted to use knives, which police found in his home and brought in as evidence. Due to the discovery of the knives, police believe his actions were premeditated.

Schleier is in custody at the Linn County Jail on a charge of first-degree murder. Records show a judge set his bond at $1 million cash.

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