Mark Stover’s Death: Where is Linda Opdycke and Michael Oakes Now
He was a renowned dog trainer and whisperer, best known for training the dogs of some famous Hollywood celebrities.
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Mark Stover Obituary
Not much is known about Mark’s childhood, aside from that his father died when he was 18 months old, and he was raised by his mother, whose name isn’t known by the media.
As a teenager, he was often in various forms of trouble due to smoking dope. While in high school, he was kicked out of school.
It was in this troubled state that he met a German Shepherd named Gunther.
Mark and this dog soon became inseparable, and he trained the dog to be a rescue dog, which was the beginning of his career as a dog trainer.
Mark Stover Relationship and Divorce
During the cause of Mark’s career as a dog trainer, he met Linda Opdycke, who needed help in training her dog.
Read also: Jeff Conaway Death: Age, Injury, Autopsy, Net Worth
Where is Linda Opdycke and Michael Oakes Now
Linda is the daughter of a multimillionaire, “Wally Opdycke,” who once co-owned Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery and K2 Ski Corporation.
A few months later, they began dating, and in the early 1990s, three months into their relationship, they opened an island, Dog Adventures on Kiket Island, a private island owned by Linda’s family.
After being together for 11 years, the couple decided to tie the knot finally. However, the relationship was not a peaceful one.
According to Linda, Mark was constantly in rage, often rude to people, threatening them with guns (he had lots of guns; being a gun collector), and was often money-obsessed.
The marriage became unbearable for her, leading to her filing a divorce after three years of marriage in 2005.
Mark, however, refused to hire a lawyer and saw the divorce as a declaration of war on Linda’s part.
As a result, she had to move far away from him, leaving the business and her family house to him, but Mark kept searching for her till he found her and began stalking her.
Mark Stover’s Murder
After Mark eventually signed the divorce papers, it was recorded that Mark continued harassing Linda.
He would show up armed and uninvited in her home and often harass her through mails and calls.
According to her, he was once caught on a security camera roaming around her house by 2: 30am.
Although Mark was eventually arrested after her neighbor caught him going through her garbage, a restraining order was issued against him in early 2008.
After the incident, Mark canceled her health insurance and sent her the mail as a threat.
Linda fearing for her life took up self-defense classes and acquired guns in her home to protect herself.
During the cause of doing this, she met Michiel Oakes, whom she soon began dating.
On October 28, 2009, Mark Stover’s neighbor reported a trespasser close to Mark’s house and two cars seen parked at the grange hall, one of the cars was later identified as that of Michiel Oakes while the other being Mark’s.
The neighbor also reported seeing Michiel with a large plastic bag, big enough to be a body.
The following day a lady who was later identified as Mark’s girlfriend reported him missing, while his dog was found bleeding due to gunshot wounds to the face.
Where is Michael Oakes now
Michiel was eventually arrested after he was found with a .22-caliber and a 9 mm pistol. He later admitted to killing Mark, according to him, out of self-defense as they got into an argument over Linda.
Mark’s body was never found as It was reportedly wrapped in plastic and dropped into the Swinomish Channel.
Michiel Oakes was convicted of first-degree murder and was sentenced to 26.6 years in prison. He is serving time at Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla, but rumor is that he might get an early release.
Linda Opdycke Now
More Controversies – Linda Opdycke
According to Mark Stover’s family, he had moved on after the divorce and was in a relationship with Teresa Vaux-Michel, whom he intended to marry.
The family revealed that Mark knew his life was being threatened by Linda and her family and often told them he feared he would be killed.
They went further to show that Linda stalked Mark and that his death was intentional and planned. However, Linda was not charged with any crime.
In 2013, Mark’s girlfriend Teresa Vaux-Michel filed a petition against his estate, claiming that before his death, Mark fearing for his life, had issued her a check at his residence but was never seen after his death.
However, a state appealing rejected her petition, saying she filed it too late as this was filed four years after his death.
