Anarae Schunk, a 20-year-old Caucasian female and a student at the University of Minnesota, was tragically killed on September 22, 2013. Her death was the result of a brutal attack in which she was stabbed 22 times with a kitchen knife. The fatal injuries included severed carotid arteries and jugular veins.
The series of events that led to her death began when she agreed to meet her ex-boyfriend, Shavelle Chavez-Nelson, also known as Anthony Lee Nelson, in an attempt to recover a
significant amount of money she had loaned him. On the night of September 21, 2013, Anarae met with Chavez-Nelson and his then-girlfriend, Ashley Conrade. The three of them were at Nina's Bar & Grill in Burnsville when Chavez-Nelson got into a violent altercation with another man, Palagor Jobi, in the parking lot, fatally shooting him. Following the shooting, Anarae accompanied Chavez-Nelson and Conrade to Conrade's townhouse in Rosemount. It was in the kitchen of this townhouse that Anarae Schunk was murdered in the early morning hours of September 22. Evidence suggests she fought for her life, as indicated by defensive wounds found on her hands.
After her murder, Anarae's body was placed in a plastic tub, and her clothes were cut off. Chavez-Nelson and Conrade then drove to a rural area in Rice County, where they dumped her body in a roadside ditch. There were indications that they had attempted to set her body on fire. Her family reported her missing on September 23, and after an extensive search, her body was discovered on September 30. The investigation that followed uncovered a significant amount of evidence at Conrade's townhouse, including a large plastic tub containing a substantial amount of blood and a bloodstained quilt hidden in the garage. Blood evidence was also found on the kitchen floor.
Both Shavelle Chavez-Nelson and Ashley Conrade were arrested and faced charges for their roles in Anarae Schunk's death. Initially, both were charged with second-degree intentional murder, which was later upgraded by a grand jury to first and second-degree murder. Ultimately, both suspects entered into plea agreements. Ashley Conrade pleaded guilty to aiding an offender after the fact and was sentenced to 15 years in prison for her part in the crimes against both Anarae Schunk and Palagor Jobi. Shavelle Chavez-Nelson, who was already serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole for the murder of Palagor Jobi, pleaded guilty to the second-degree murder of Anarae Schunk. He received an additional sentence of 17 years in prison for her murder. The plea deals were made with the support of Anarae's family, who wished to avoid the further trauma of a trial.
