A Marriage Proposal That Never Happened: The Heartbreaking Murder of Dominic Kampf

April 21, 2023

Dominic and Sarah were in love and wanted to get married, and Dominic had planned his proposal: he would take Sarah on a romantic vacation to Florida, ask her to marry him on the beach, and introduce her to his maternal family at a family gathering at his grandfather’s house. I flew to Florida ahead of them, on April 19. This was the first major vacation Dominic ever arranged, and he consulted with me (his mother) along the way. Dominic told Sarah that he was taking her to Florida and that he had a big surprise for her once they got there. Sarah planned to arrive at Dominic’s cabin on April 21 at 7:30 PM. They were leaving for the airport on April 22 at 5:00 AM.

When Dominic finished his Scotland Oil shift on the morning of April 21 his vacation officially started, and he bought champagne on his way home from work to celebrate later that night with Sarah. As young people do, Dominic and Sarah were excitedly texting each other frequently throughout the day. At 1:38 PM, Dominic texted Sarah that he had finished packing his suitcase and was getting ready to take a shower. Sarah anticipated Dominic would text her back after he got out of the shower and climbed into bed because that was what he always did. However, Dominic abruptly stopped communicating, and he never responded to Sarah again.

As planned, Sarah arrived at the cabin with her suitcase packed for Florida at 7:30 PM. Dominic’s vehicle was in the driveway, yet Dominic would not come to the door to unlock it. Sarah repeatedly tried calling Dominic, and despite hearing his phone ringing inside the cabin, he failed to answer it. By 9:19 PM, Dominic still had not answered the door to let her in or responded to his phone, and Sarah called 911.

Unfortunately, Michigan State Police (MSP) Trooper Andrew Woodard was the officer who responded to the 911 call, making him the commanding officer at the scene. He was initially assisted by two Isabella County Sheriff’s Deputies, Jeff Chaprnka and Steve Humphrey. According to Sarah, prior to entering Dominic’s cabin, the officers walked the perimeter of the cabin and tried to look inside Dominic’s bedroom window using a flashlight (and failed to recognize that the window showed clear signs of forced entry).

Officers discovered that Dominic’s vehicle was unlocked. Sarah told the officers this was very unusual; she had never once seen Dominic leave his vehicle unlocked while unattended before. Officers searched Dominic’s vehicle; nothing appeared out of place, and NO FIREARMS were found.

At 9:56 PM, officers gained entry to the cabin.

Dominic was found lying on his bed, deceased with a single bullet hole in the center of his forehead.
Dominic's ankles were crossed as if he were relaxing, and his blanket appeared tucked around his body. Deep impressions in the middle and lower half of the bed mattress appeared as if someone might have been kneeling or standing on the bed.
The champagne Dominic bought earlier that day was sitting next to the bed.
Dominic's suitcase was neatly packed and ready for Florida.
Upon entering the cabin, the bathroom door was closed, which was unusual; Dominic normally left his bathroom door open.
The clothes Dominic stripped off at 1:38 PM to take a shower were still lying on the bathroom floor; with his wallet and car keys still in the pockets of his work pants. That WAS HIGHLY UNUSUAL for Dominic; he always put his dirty clothes in the washing machine immediately after he got out of the shower because his cat Mac was so fully committed to peeing on his clothes at every opportunity.
Dominic's electric razors were laid out on the stove next to the bathroom, ready for use; a typical setup by Dominic when he got ready to take a shower. However, his razors appeared to have never been used. Additionally, Dominic always put away his razors directly after he used them, and on that day he would have put them inside his suitcase that he had packed for Florida. The location and unused appearance of Dominic's electric razors were very unusual.
The window with external signs of forced entry was also unlocked from the inside. That was highly unusual. When Dominic was home alone, he always locked his window while showering or sleeping
At 9:57 PM, Woodard ruled Dominic’s death a "suicide", and reported Dominic's "suicide" to Central Dispatch.
At 9:58 PM, Woodard notified Sarah that Dominic "committed suicide."
At 10:02 PM, Woodard reported Dominic's "suicide" to his MSP superior.

Want to join the fight for truth and justice for Dominic?

Follow and share "Justice for Dominic Kampf" on FB to keep up to date on this case and help spread the word.

Visit https://www.justicefordominickampf.com to review more evidence that I will be uploading to my website.

Donate to my fundraiser to establish a cash reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of my son’s killer. https://gofund.me/b4e775f5b All donations, no matter the amount, will be a huge help and could finally bring the truth to light.

With deepest gratitude, Noelle Shaw (Dominic’s mother)