The cause of his demise is still under investigation, with an autopsy pending. According to initial reports, the freezer he sought refuge in had no power due to long-overdue bills in the foreclosed home. As if his luck couldn't get any worse, the freezer door was designed in such a way that there was no possible escape from the inside.
Had it not been for this freezers rather intricate door design, this criminals plan to evade the police would've gone off without a hitch.
From Newser:
Per a release from the Gilbert Police Department cited by USA Today, the Midwest Medical Examiner's Office has IDed the deceased as 34-year-old Brandon Lee Buschman of Babbitt, and investigators say Buschman had climbed into the freezer "on his own accord" to try to evade authorities, as he had a warrant out for his arrest.
The timeline on when Buschman actually went into the freezer is still unclear, but authorities say that interviews with those who knew him "revealed that Buschman was last seen by those present in the home fleeing from the upstairs area of the house due to a possible police presence near the residence." Police say that the freezer wasn't turned on, as the utilities hadn't been on since April 2022. The house itself had been foreclosed upon this past February, Lt. Chelsea Trucano tells the Duluth News Tribune.
As for how Buschman became trapped in the freezer, investigators say it was "an older model with a latching mechanism on the outside." That means once it was shut behind him, Buschman wouldn't have been able to open it from the inside. It looks as though Buschman had tried to create a DIY de-latching device—investigators note that a "metal lawn ornament rod ... was inserted from inside of the freezer towards the latching mechanism." However, the rod got "jammed" and apparently didn't work. Results from a final autopsy will be out in a few weeks, police say. A preliminary autopsy showed no signs of trauma or injury, and foul play isn't suspected.
I'm no medical expert, but it seems plausible that Buschman succumbed to dehydration or starvation, leading to a slow and excruciating demise.
Ironically, his situation would have been significantly improved had he been apprehended by the police.
