Man who fatally beat victim he believed was ‘contaminated’ found not guilty due to mental illness

A Pennington County man has been found not guilty due to mental illness in connection with a fatal assault in 2023.

Jorge Luis Benitez-Estremera had been charged with first- and second-degree murder. The court found that he committed the murder, but found him not guilty due to mental illness.

According to the order filed last week, the Pennington County Attorney’s Office plans to file a petition to have Benitez-Estremera civilly committed. Until then, he will remain in either a state hospital or other facility.

According to court documents, authorities responded to a call about a man on the ground and not breathing at Digi-Key in Thief River Falls. The man was pronounced dead at the scene.

RELATED: Man in custody after Thief River Falls homicide | Charges: 32-year-old fatally beat man, says victim was ‘contaminated’

Investigators saw blood coming from the man’s head and found a bloody sign lying across his body.

Surveillance video showed the victim smoking in the parking lot before being attacked by a man, later identified as Benitez-Estremera.

Benitez-Estremera was seen punching and kicking the victim, as well as slamming his head into a car’s windshield and hitting him with a sign.

Court documents note that the victim never acted aggressively toward Benitez-Esremera and that the altercation lasted around three minutes.

After the assault, Benitez-Estremera was seen getting into his car and emerging wearing a different shirt and a towel around his waist. He was then seen throwing the clothes he was previously wearing into the garbage.

After his arrest, Benitez-Estremera told investigators that the victim was “contaminated and needed to be taken out of the system.”

Here is a list of suicide prevention and mental health resources:

988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988

Crisis Text Line – Text MN to 741741 to connect with a trained crisis counselor to receive free, 24/7 crisis support via text message.

Minnesota Department of Human Service’s adult mental health resources

DHS map and list of statewide adult mental health crisis response phone numbers

DHS map and list of statewide children’s mental health crisis response phone numbers

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) – Minnesota

Veterans Crisis Line at 988, Option 1 or by texting 838255

Minnesota Farm and Rural Mental Health Helpline at 833-600-2670 or by texting “FarmStress” to 898211

If you believe someone is at risk of suicide, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services suggests you:

Ask questions about whether the individual is having suicidal thoughts.

Call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

Seek help from a medical or mental health professional. If it is an emergency situation, take the person to a hospital.

Remove any objects from a person’s home that could be potentially used in a suicide.

Do not leave the person alone, if possible, until help is available.

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