H2H 4. 197. Nathan Leuthold. My Bloody Valentine.

February 14, 2013, Peoria, Illinois. It’s the morning of Valentine’s Day, and Baptist Missionary, Nathan Leuthold has already adorned the kitchen table with roses and a heartfelt card for his wife, Denise. From the outside, the home of Nathan, Denise and their three precious children was filled with warmth and familiar love, but it would soon become the scene of a tragic and senseless act. By the time the kids were coming home from school, Denise was dead—met with a fatal gunshot wound inside the very threshold of her home—her car keys still in her hand. But who would do such a thing? This murder would rock a community, and take a church to its knees wondering who to pray for. Was it Nathan, who’d lost his wife? Was it for Denise’s soul? Or maybe, Aina Dobiaite. The eighteen-year-old Lithuanian ministry student with whom Nathan was having an affair. What would be the ultimate Valentine’s gift for your lover? This is Nathan Leuthold. My Bloody Valentine.

Sources used for this podcast

The People vs Leuthold

Dateline Unforgettable | Nathan Leuthold | S2 E27 |NBC /Oxygen

Dateline Secrets Uncovered | 2019 | S7E11 | NCB /Oxygen

DeWitt Daily News | Clinton, IL

Medium | The Murder of Denise Leuthold | 2.14.2021 | Felicia Huffman

The Pantagraph | 9.12.2014 | AP

Peoria Journal Star | 7.21.2014 | Andy Kravetz

Dignity Memorial | Denise Leuthold

SK Pop | 8.10.2023 | Sourav Chakraborty

Career Gear | Aina Dobilate

Find A Grave | Denise Lee Newton Leuthold