Accusation: Minneapolis woman found dead in Iowa woman’s car in southern Minnesota

OLMSTED COUNTY, Minnesota — An Iowa woman faces charges after a Minneapolis woman was found dead in her crashed car in southern Minnesota over the weekend.

According to the Olmsted County Sheriff’s Office, officers responded to a single-vehicle crash on eastbound Interstate 90 near the Highway 42 exit around 7 a.m. Saturday.

Upon arrival, officers encountered the driver, identified by officers as 32-year-old Margot Lewis of North Liberty, Iowa, who had exited the vehicle and was being assisted by a passerby, according to the sheriff’s office.

Upon checking the vehicle, officers found a dead 35-year-old woman in the back seat. The woman’s condition was suspicious and “it was immediately apparent that the death was not a result of the car accident,” the sheriff’s office said.

According to the indictment, the body was wrapped in a “bedsheet, blanket, futon-type mattress and tarp.” One of the officers noticed a large wound on the right side of the woman’s neck. The medical examiner says preliminary information indicates the fatal injuries were not caused by the accident, but occurred beforehand.

The Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner’s Office later released an update and identified the victim as Liara Tsai. Officials say she was “cut and stabbed” by an attacker and died from numerous stab wounds. The cause of death is listed as homicide.

Lewis was treated at a local hospital before being arrested for tampering with a corpse. The charges were formally filed Tuesday, the same day she made her first court appearance. She is being held on $1 million bail.

The Minneapolis Police Department was notified of the incident after receiving a request to conduct a welfare check at Tsai’s address in the 700 block of 16th Street East.

According to Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara, investigators found “a crime scene consistent with violence” at Tsai’s address. Minneapolis police are assisting the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension in its investigation.

On Wednesday, Lewis was charged with two counts of first-degree murder.

If convicted, Lewis faces up to 40 years in prison.