Minnesota man pleads guilty to killing 2 women found in storage units

Minnesota Man Pleads Guilty to Murdering Two Women, Sentenced to Two 40-Year Terms

A Minnesota man, Joseph Steven Jorgenson, 41, of Woodbury, pleaded guilty on Thursday to the brutal killings and dismemberment of two women, Manijeh Starren in 2023 and Fanta Xayavong in 2021, whose bodies were found in separate storage units.

As per the plea deal, Jorgenson is set to receive two 40-year sentences, the maximum under Minnesota law for intentional second-degree murder, to be served concurrently. Typically, defendants in Minnesota serve two-thirds of their sentences in prison and one-third on supervised release.

Ramsey County Attorney John Choi expressed, “These heinous acts of cruelty took the lives of two young women and forever altered the future of their friends and family.”

Investigation and Discovery of Victims

The investigation began when Starren’s father reported her missing in April 2023. Concerned about her mental health and addiction struggles, he informed the authorities that she had not been in touch as usual. Evidence from her residence, surveillance footage, and digital accounts led the police to suspect Jorgenson.

Subsequently, keys found at Jorgenson’s place led investigators to a storage facility in Woodbury, where Starren’s dismembered remains were discovered in coolers and a bag. Further investigation unveiled evidence of a second victim, Xayavong, with whom Jorgenson had a relationship in 2021. Her remains were located in a separate storage unit in Coon Rapids.