Mankato, MN (KROC-AM News) - A Mankato teenager today entered into a plea agreement that is expected to keep him behind bars for decades.

Blue Earth County court records say 18-year-old Guenther Boone Jr. was arrested on December 21, 2024 after Mankato police responded to a report of a shooting in a neighborhood near Mankato West High School. When officers arrived at the scene, they found a man in the passenger seat of a vehicle dead from an apparent gunshot wound to the back of his head.

Mankato Police Reported the Fatal Shooting Occurred During a Boxed Robbery

According to the criminal complaint, the driver of the vehicle told investigators that he and the 31-year-old victim had gone to Boone's residence to sell him marijuana vape cartridges. The witness stated that Boone got into the back seat of the car and he heard him say "why are you clutching bro" just before he heard a pop and the victim were shot in the head.

Mankato Dept. of Public Safety photo

Boone then fled from the vehicle and was located by police in his residence. The court document says Boone initially denied any knowledge of what had happened, but when confronted with the evidence, he admitted shooting the victim in the head "execution style."

Thinkstock(stockbyte)

The criminal complaint says Boone told investigators his plan was to rob the driver of the vehicle and that he shot the victim after he saw him move his hand. Boone stated that he did not see a gun, but he assumed the victim had one because he was the person who had sold him the murder weapon.

Boone was charged with second-degree murder along with possessing a firearm with no serial number. He also faced a gross misdemeanor charge of carrying a pistol without a permit in a public place.

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Under the terms of his plea agreement, Boone today entered a guilty plea to the second-degree murder charge. The plea deal indicates that he has agreed to a penalty at the top end of state sentencing guidelines, which call for a 40 year prison sentence.

Boone the scheduled to be sentenced in August.

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