CARTER LAKE, Iowa – In an update to our previous post, officials with the Iowa Department of Public Safety, Friday (today) say a subject who was found deceased in a room at the Country Inn and Suites in Carter Lake, Tuesday, has been identified. On Thursday, the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner positively identified the deceased male as 63-year-old Kenneth Bruce Gauff, of Omaha, Nebraska. The manner of death has been ruled a homicide.
On Thursday (April 30th), 37-year-old Joseph Edward Bertolino was charged with Murder in the First Degree, a class A Felony. Bertolino is currently in custody in Lancaster County, Nebraska for Attempted First Degree Assault on a Police Officer, stemming from an assault in Lincoln on April 28, 2026. On May 1, 2026, Bertolino appeared in court and waived extradition. He will be transported to Iowa to face his murder charge.
A copy of the criminal complaint is shown below.
