Inside the Rick and Gail Brink murder: Detectives spot key living room evidence decades after West Michigan case went cold

The Rick and Gail Brink murder case shocked the West Michigan community after details about the case started to surface years later. Gail, who was twenty-two years old, and her husband, Rick, who was twenty-eight years old, were reportedly found dead at their home in Park Township, Michigan.

What initially appeared to be the killing of a young married couple took a very different turn when Gail's brother, Ryan Wyngarden, was charged in connection with their deaths. Years later, his wife testified that Wyngarden told her that he killed Gail and Rick because he feared Gail would reveal their teenage sexual relationship.

The living room evidence that helped crack the Rick and Gail Brink murder case

On November 23, 1987, Rick and Gail Brink were found dead at their home. The investigators in the Rick and Gail Brink murder case were first alerted by the responding officer that they had found a female victim in the house and another victim in the car, which was outside the house, according to True Crime Central. The bodies were first discovered by Rick's parents.

While Gail had three wounds in her head, Rick was found with two bullet holes in his head. Detective Lauren Wassink led the investigation into the couple's murders. After seeing hefty cash in the drawers, they understood that whoever did this wasn't after the money and might have known the couple from the close.

The investigators also talked to Ryan Wyngarden, who was Gail's brother. But he reportedly said that he didn't know about their murders. The authorities further suspected Gail's ex-boyfriend, who claimed to be in love with her. After he passed the polygraph test, he was removed from the suspect list.

The case eventually went cold after authorities and detectives couldn't find much solid evidence that could tell who killed Rick and Gail.

In 2011, Detective Venus Repper and David Blakely took over the case to find out the main killer and started reviewing the old photographs from the case. During the investigation, Repper saw that a pillow that belonged to the living room was placed on Gail's face. Instead of having bullet holes on it, it had blood on it, which indicated that it had been placed there after Gail was killed.

Detectives believed the killer had covered Gail's face deliberately, making them think the act was personal rather than a random decision since they had put effort into bringing a living room pillow. Detective Repper explained that the person might not have wanted to look at her after the murder, which also meant they knew the couple closely.

The living-room pillow observation helped shift the investigation toward people close to the couple, including their family members. Detectives first questioned Rick’s brother, but he was soon ruled out as a suspect. They then turned to Gail’s family, starting with her older sister, who raised concerns about their brother Ryan and described him as controlling.

Gail's sister revealed that Ryan called Gail the night before the Rick and Gail Brink murder, and the two had a violent confrontation. They started focusing on Ryan and learned that he was married to a woman, whom they even brought for questioning.

Ryan's wife first said that she couldn't remember anything about the Rick and Gail Brink murder but finally admitted that Ryan was not there with her on the night of the murder. In the Rick and Gail Brink murder case, investigators also started investigating Ryan's ex, who told them that Ryan wanted kids. She also told detectives that after Gail's murder, Ryan asked her to go for a drive. During the ride, he spoke about how awful a person he was, leaving her afraid that he might confess to killing the couple.

Ryan admitted that he had a sexual relationship with his sister and that she had not consented to it. The detectives brought Ryan in for questioning in the Rick and Gail Brink murder case, and he admitted to having a relationship with his sister. However, Ryan did not admit to being involved in the murders.

Later, Ryan's then-wife told police that he had admitted to killing the couple. She said he did it because he did not want his past sexual relationship with his sister to become known. Detectives believed Ryan was also jealous of Gail's lifestyle, and after a heated confrontation, he killed Gail and Rick Brink.

Wyngarden was found guilty of first-degree murder in the Rick and Gail Brink murder case.

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Also read: 48 Hours: Into Thin Air - Inside the investigation into Jean Zapata’s disappearance and murder

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