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CALDWELL COUNTY, Mo. — A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed against a man accused of killing two brothers from Wisconsin over a cattle deal.

Mugshot of Garland Joseph “Joey” Nelson – photo from Caldwell County

The lawsuit filed by relatives of Nicholas and Justin Diemel in Caldwell County names Garland Nelson, his mother Tomme Feil and J4S Farm Enterprises Inc. as defendants.

In July 2019, the brothers traveled to Missouri to get a payment from Nelson for $250,000, money which court documents say Nelson didn’t have. The brothers then disappeared, and part of their remains were discovered on Nelson’s farm in Braymer.

Nelson is currently in the Caldwell County jail facing murder charges in the case.

The lawsuit claims that shortly after Nelson was released from prison on previous charges of illegally selling cattle, Feil created J4s Farm Enterprises Inc. and allowed Nelson to continue selling cattle — even though he was on probation and wasn’t supposed to take on new debt.

Court documents allege that Feil and the company were negligent and that they “should have known that allowing Nelson to return to the cattle business created an unreasonable risk of harm to others, including decedents.”

Nick and Justin Diemel (Courtesy of Lisa Diemel)

The suit also says “Nelson intended to kill decedents if they came to Missouri to collect the payment for the cattle” and that Feil and the company concealed Nelson’s prior conviction of cattle fraud.

Relatives of the Diemel brothers are asking for a “reasonable sum of money for damages” related to the loss of cattle, as well as punitive damages.

Garland Nelson is due back in criminal court Jan. 9 in Caldwell County.

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