NEW ULM — On Sunday, Nov. 2, a nationwide arrest warrant was issued for Randy Thomas Zimmerman for the alleged double homicide of Justin Reinarts and Tabitha Trescott in Hanska.

Zimmerman was later apprehended based on this warrant in Louisa County, Iowa.

Two days later, on Nov. 4, another warrant was issued in Brown County for Zimmerman regarding his failure to appear for an Omnibus Hearing regarding another case.

On July 24, 2025, Zimmerman was charged with six counts of felony stalking. If convicted of these stalking charges, it would be Zimmerman’s third qualified domestic violence conviction within 10 years. In fact, court records show Zimmerman had been convicted of assault six times between Brown and Nicollet counties.

His first assault conviction was on March 26, 2001. Zimmerman was convicted of fourth-degree assault from an incident occurring on Jan. 18. Other charges connected to this incident were dismissed.

One year later, on March 13, 2002, Zimmerman was convicted of third-degree assault for an incident on Feb. 22. He plead guilty and his sentence of 15 months was stayed and Zimmerman was given five years of probation, but he later requested to execute the jail sentence with time served.

Zimmerman’s next assault conviction came 11 years later in Nicollet County. On July 23, 2013, Zimmerman was convicted of burglary in the first degree to commit assault.

According to the criminal complaint, on March 10, 2013, Nicollet County Sheriff’s Office responded to a domestic assault report at a Nicollet apartment. Zimmerman got into a fight with his ex-girlfriend in her apartment. The complaint alleged he grabbed her by the neck. The woman’s 10-year-old son was present and Zimmerman allegedly threatened to kill the boy. The woman managed to convince Zimmerman to leave the apartment, after which she locked the door.

Zimmerman then tried kicking in the door and allegedly placed both the woman and her son in a headlocks. The woman managed to slip free, and Zimmerman fled the scene. The Nicollet County Sheriff’s Office was eventually able to locate and arrest him. He was charged with two counts of burglary, one count of domestic assault by strangulation, one count of terrorist threat and one count of assault in the fifth-degree. He was only convicted of the burglary with intent to commit assault. All other charges were dismissed. Zimmerman’s conviction carried 20 years probation, but his probation was discharged after nine years.

On Jan. 20, 2015, he was convicted of fifth-degree assault from a May 20, 2014, incident. This was a misdemeanor charge, but it was considered a violation of probation from the previous conviction.

In August of 2023, nearly a year after he was discharged from probation related to the 2013 domestic assault, Zimmerman was again charged with domestic assault. Zimmerman was accused of shoving his ex-girlfriend to the ground following an argument. The victim told police the two had just broken up. Zimmerman was convicted of misdemeanor domestic assault on Dec. 11, 2023, for this incident.

Two days after this conviction, he would be accused of committing another domestic assault against the same ex-girlfriend. According to the complaint on Dec. 13, 2023, Zimmerman visited his ex-girlfriend’s apartment to remove his property. After gathering his property, Zimmerman allegedly headbutted his ex-girlfriend. He would be convicted of this assault a year later, on Dec. 3, 2024.

This was Zimmerman’s final assault conviction. Less than a year later in July 2025 he would be charged with stalking.

According to the complaint, the stalking victim filed a harassment restraining order against Zimmerman at the Brown County Courthouse on July 24, 2025. After leaving the courthouse, the victim and a witness noticed Zimmerman’s vehicle driving around the block. The witness stated Zimmerman was harassing the victim with calls and following her in his vehicle.

The victim’s call log showed 93 phone calls from Zimmerman’s number on July 24. The witness said Zimmerman once followed the victim to her apartment and let himself in, as he had a key. For this reason, this victim was scared to stay in her apartment. She told law enforcement she once woke up in her apartment with Zimmerman standing over her.

Later that day, the victim reported seeing Zimmerman waiting in the parking lot of her workplace in New Ulm. A probable cause to arrest Zimmerman was issues and he was arrested the next day and charged with six counts of felony stalking. The charges included a reference that Zimmerman had two other qualified domestic violence-related offenses within the last 10 years.

Zimmerman’s plea hearing for the stalking Charges was Sept. 30. The Omnibus hearing for the charges was scheduled for Nov. 4.

No official determination has been made on the stalking case, but by Nov. 2, the list of charges against Zimmerman grew to include second-degree murder alleged double homicide of Reinarts and Trescott.

Zimmerman could still face first-degree murder charges in the case. On Nov. 13, Minnesota’s Assistant Attorney General Daniel Vlieger submitted a letter notifying Zimmerman’s defense attorney, Assistant State Public Defender Gregory Handevidt, that the district court would be convening a Grand Jury of Brown County to investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths of Reinarts and Trescott. The Grand Jury investigation begins Monday at the Brown County Courthouse.