Man sentenced to 30½ years for role in Isanti County murder

A man who was involved in a 2023 home invasion-turned-murder in Isanti County has been sentenced to more than three decades in prison for his role in the crime.

On Monday, a judge sentenced 47-year-old Gerald “Jerold” Allen Downs to just over 30 years (366 months) for the murder of Jose De Jesus Diaz Fernandes. Downs previously pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree murder on June 2.

RELATED: 4 arrested in connection with Isanti County homicide

According to charging documents, Downs and two co-conspirators burglarized a ranch in Spencer Brook Township in December 2023. Downs was accused of kicking in the front door of the purported drug stash house while one of his accomplices shot and killed Diaz Fernandes.

Codefendant Fredy Saavedra Olivar coordinated the ambush and hired the three men to go to the stash house while dressed as police officers. A jury found him guilty of second-degree murder and first-degree burglary, and he was sentenced in February to 30½ years in prison.

Another codefendant, Abraham Alexander Houle, pleaded guilty to counts of first-degree burglary and aiding an offender. He is set to be sentenced on Sept. 2.

A third codefendant, Jessie Mateo Rodrigues, is charged with counts of second-degree murder and first-degree burglary and is set to stand trial beginning on Aug. 11.
The post Man sentenced to 30½ years for role in Isanti County murder first appeared on KSTP.com 5 Eyewitness News.