MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — A 16-year-old boy has pleaded guilty to being the “lookout” in a 79-year-old Willmar woman’s stabbing death, according to the Kandiyohi County Court.
On Tuesday, Devon Jenkins specifically pleaded guilty to one felony count of second-degree murder without intent. If accepted by the court, Jenkins will receive a stayed 180-month prison sentence.
In late July, sheriff’s deputies found Lila Warwick dead in her home in Willmar. Investigators say she’d been strangled and stabbed.
Two days later, authorities arrested 19-year-old Brok Junkermeier and a 16-year-old boy, later identified as Jenkins. The following day, they arrested Warwick’s 17-year-old grandson, Robert.
The criminal complaint states Junkermeier broke into her home, early Monday morning, while Jenkins waited in the car. It details Junkermeier admitting to a friend that he cut Warwick with a sword-like knife and forced her to access her bank account on a computer. It also states he made her write out a $1,500 check.
It states he strangled Warwick — repeatedly stabbed her — and threw her body in the basement.
Junkermeier is charged with second-degree murder with intent, not premeditated. If convicted, he could face up to 40 years in prison.
The dispositional hearing, or juvenile sentencing, is set for Jan. 27, 2014.
