Man Gets 40 Years After Body Found In Dakota County Culvert

MINNEAPOLIS — A 41-year-old Minneapolis man was sentenced to 40 years in prison after he was convicted of murder in the killing of a 39-year-old.

In March 2021, Ivan Contreras-Sanchez beat a man to death in Minneapolis, drove to Dakota County, and dumped the body into a culvert, according to investigators.

In late April of that year, a passerby found a body in a culvert under a field approach, about one mile east of Chippendale Avenue and 255th Street West in Castle Rock Township, authorities said.

Authorities identified the body as 39-year-old Manuel Mandujano of Minneapolis.

During the investigation, a confidential informant told authorities that a woman confessed to helping move Mandujano's body, according to police.

Late last month, a jury convicted Contreras-Sanchez of second-degree intentional murder. The jury also voted to allow the court to consider the state's request for a longer than normal sentence.

"I first want to express my condolences to the victim’s family for the loss of their loved one," Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said. "This act of violence was particularly cruel and I am satisfied that the sentence reflects the heinous nature of this crime."

Under the state's presumptive sentence guidelines, Contreras-Sanchez would have received 306 months, or 25 and 1/2 years. However, the court ruled that Contreras-Sanchez acted with particular cruelty and sentenced him to the statutory maximum sentence for intentional murder in the second degree.