SPRINGDALE, UTAH, June 25 (Vegas News Online) — Washington County, Utah, prosecutors have charged former Las Vegas youth pastor David Vander Meer with first-degree murder and insurance fraud in the 2006 death of his wife, Bernadette Vander Meer, at Zion National Park, according to the Washington County Attorney’s Office.
Court records cited in reporting say Bernadette Vander Meer died after a fall from Angels Landing on Aug. 22, 2006, and that the death was initially treated as accidental. The records also say David Vander Meer later filed a life insurance claim and received a payout of about $567,000 in July 2007.
U.S. Marshals arrested Vander Meer on June 22, and he was booked into the Clark County Detention Center, according to reports citing law enforcement action. A probable cause affidavit cited in reporting alleges that he increased the couple’s life insurance before his wife’s death, though the reports differ on whether the policies were raised to $550,000 each or to about $600,000 each.
The New York Times later reported that Vander Meer died in custody after the charges were announced, before the case could proceed.
