Rather than go to trial this week for murder, an Isanti County man has admitted that he fatally shot a woman he flirted with at two bars, then buried her on his farm property just north of the Twin Cities.
Man admits shooting woman he flirted with at bars, burying body on his Isanti County farmland
Her body was unearthed by law enforcement several days after she was reported missing.
February 15, 2023 at 2:02PM
Richard M. Peterson II, 38, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Isanti County District Court to second-degree intentional murder in connection with the killing in August 2021 of 32-year-old Amanda Jo Vangrinsven, who worked at one of the bars where she and the suspect hung out together.
The plea agreement reached between the defense and prosecution calls for Peterson to receive a sentence of 233⁄4 years. With credit for time in jail since his arrest, Peterson is expected to serve slightly more than 14 years in prison and then the balance on supervised release.
Rather than to go to trial starting Tuesday, Peterson agreed to enter what is called an Alford plea, meaning he maintains his innocence but acknowledges the prosecution has enough evidence to win a conviction. His sentencing is scheduled April 13.
"Amanda loved hunting, music and spending time with friends and family," her online obituary read. " The color pink and camo were her style when it came to fashion."
According to the criminal complaint:
On Aug. 5, 2021, Vangrinsven had been drinking with Peterson at the VFW in Isanti, where she worked. Other patrons and staff said the two were "touching each other very affectionately," the complaint read.
Peterson told others there he would drive Vangrinsven home because she had too much to drink. However, the two instead went to the Dugout Bar and Grill in Bethel.
At some point, the complaint noted, "there appeared to be a change" in their affectionate behavior before they left the Dugout, and Vangrinsven never made it home and didn't report for work at the VFW bar the next day.
Investigators determined that Vangrinsven was last seen with Peterson, and they went to his home in the 300 block of NW. 261st Avenue in Athens Township to question him. His wife told investigators she saw Peterson driving a tractor with a front-end bucket and a rear excavating shovel at the south end of the property the morning after Vangrinsven disappeared.
On Aug. 10, investigators inspected ground on the southwestern end of the property that had recently been turned over by a tractor, and they located Vangrinsven's body. She had been shot in the back of the head, according to a medical examiner's report.
The pilot was the only person inside the plane, and was not injured in the emergency landing, according to the State Patrol.
