David Vander Meer, a former Las Vegas youth pastor, has died days after being arrested and charged with murdering his wife, Bernadette Vander Meer, who fell to her death while hiking in Utah's Zion National Park in 2006. A Las Vegas judge announced his death at a scheduled extradition hearing on Thursday, according to KSNV.
Investigators reopened the case in 2022 after receiving new information that David had groomed and been sexually involved with a minor in his youth group ministry at the time of his wife's death. The woman, now an adult, told investigators that David had said they could only be together if Bernadette was not alive, according to court documents.
In August 2006, David and Bernadette were hiking at Angels Landing to celebrate their anniversary. David told investigators he had walked away to move backpacks before a photograph when he heard Bernadette scream and found her missing. Her death was initially ruled an accident.
Before her death, David secured life insurance policies for the couple, increasing them from $150,000 each to $550,000 each. After Bernadette's death, he received a payout of $567,439 and lived “lavishly,” investigators said.
Bernadette's mother hailed David's arrest earlier this week, saying her daughter was “vindicated,” while her father said, “We’ve been waiting on the Lord for this day.” The Las Vegas police department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
