Dustin Lee Honken was born on March 22, 1968, in Britt, Iowa. He grew up in a small town where his family faced many challenges. His father, Jim Honken, struggled with alcoholism and was known for his scheming behavior. Dustin reported that his father struck him multiple times during his childhood, although he later denied that his father was physically abusive. Instead, he felt that the emotional struggles in his early life were mostly due to his father's drinking problem.

When Dustin was nine years old, his parents divorced. Despite these difficulties, he had a good relationship with his mother, whom he considered perfect. She provided a stable and nurturing environment for him. He also had a healthy relationship with his stepfather. These positive connections in his family life may have countered some of the turmoil caused by his father’s actions.

Dustin was a good student and excelled in subjects like math, science, and writing. In 1991, he earned a scholarship to North Iowa Area Community College and had plans to become a pharmaceutical lawyer. However, his life took a different turn as he began to be involved in illegal activities.

During his childhood, Dustin also had a troubled relationship with his sister, Alyssa. He sometimes verbally and physically abused her. There were instances when he acted violently, such as holding a pillow over her face and trying to drown her in a hotel pool, which left her frightened.

In July 1993, Dustin Lee Honken and his girlfriend, Angela Johnson, were involved in a series of murders linked to their drug operation. After discovering that Greg Nicholson, one of Honken's former partners in drug dealing, was cooperating with authorities, Honken and Johnson made a plan to eliminate him and those close to him. On July 24, 1993, Johnson entered Nicholson's home by pretending to be a lost saleswoman. Once inside, she and Honken bound Nicholson and his girlfriend, Lori Ann Duncan.

Johnson then took Lori's daughters, Kandace and Amber, under the pretense of taking them on a trip. Honken and Johnson forced the family into a car and drove them to a remote wooded area. There, Honken executed the adults in front of a pre-dug grave. He then did the same to the children. After these murders, they went into hiding.

A few months later, on November 5, 1993, Terry DeGeus, another former dealer associated with Honken, vanished under similar circumstances. Johnson lured him to a meeting by pretending to want to reconcile their relationship. Honken was waiting at an abandoned house. There, he brutally beat and shot DeGeus before burying him as well.

In the years that followed, Honken attempted to destroy evidence of these crimes. He and his accomplice, Tim Cutkomp, melted away a pistol used in the murders to hide their involvement. However, Honken’s plan unraveled when Dan Cobeen, a new partner in his drug operation, became a police informant.

In 2000, information surfaced leading to the discovery of the victims' bodies. Johnson, who was arrested, began to confess to the murders after being manipulated by another inmate. This ultimately led to Honken's arrest in 2001 for the killings.

During his trial, numerous witnesses came forward, testifying about Honken’s confessions and plans to murder potential witnesses. In 2004, he was found guilty of multiple counts of murder and conspiracy related to his drug activities and the violent elimination of witnesses. He was sentenced to death in 2005.

Honken and Johnson both faced their trials separately. Johnson also received a death sentence for her role but had her sentence commuted to life without parole in 2014. Honken, after exhausting all appeals, was executed by lethal injection on July 17, 2020.