Suspect in Anarae Schunk's death faces murder charges in Burnsville homicide

Anthony Lee Nelson has been indicted by a Dakota County grand jury on charges of first-degree murder and intentional second-degree murder in the Sept. 22 shooting death of Palagor O. Jobi outside a Burnsville bar.

Nelson, 31, also known as Shavelle Chavez-Nelson, is also a suspect in the death of Anarae Schunk, the 20-year-old Burnsville woman who was with him that night at Nina's Grill.

She went with Nelson, who was her ex-boyfriend, and his current girlfriend, Ashley Conrade, to Conrade's Rosemount townhouse after the shooting and wasn't seen alive again.

Her body was found Sept. 30 in a roadside ditch near Lonsdale, Minn. Her family, friends and volunteers had searched frantically for her for nine days, holding on to hope that she was still alive.

Charges have not yet been filed in Schunk's death.

Nelson was arrested Sept. 24 after fleeing when he saw police arrive at Conrade's home. He was charged Sept. 26 with one count of second-degree murder in the death of Jobi, 23, of Savage.

The indictment supersedes that charge.

Conrade, 24, was charged with aiding an offender, a felony. Prosecutors said that they planned to convene a grand jury to consider more severe charges against her.

A grand jury of 16 Dakota County residents heard testimony from 10 witnesses — including Conrade, Jobi's cousin and the cousin's brother — who saw the shooting in Nina's parking lot.

Grand jury proceedings are not public, but the county attorney's office said Thursday that at least 12 members returned the enhanced indictments.

First-degree murder carries a sentence of life in prison without parole. Premeditated murder means a person planned to kill someone, even if that plan was formulated only moments before the killing. Second-degree intentional murder carries a recommended sentence of between 22 and 31 years in prison, according to Minnesota guidelines.

Nelson has a long criminal history and has spent most of his adult life in a Minnesota jail or prison.

He was charged in Hennepin County with first-degree aggravated burglary in connection with an incident in Richfield in June. At the time Jobi was killed and Schunk disappeared, he was free on $25,000 bail.

Nelson served almost eight years in prison after being convicted in 2003 of first-degree aggravated robbery. All of those cases involved a gun.

Nelson's next court hearing is scheduled for Monday. Conrade has a court hearing on Nov. 19.

Pat Pheifer • 952-746-3284