MINOT, N.D. (AP) - A man convicted of conspiracy to commit murder in the shooting death of a northwest North Dakota hobby rancher has been sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole.
The Williston Herald reports Ryan Stensaker was sentenced Thursday in Minot. A jury in December found the Williston man guilty in the spring 2013 death of 58-year-old Jack Sjol. Sjol's body was found in a garbage dump, with bullet wounds to his head, face and upper left arm.
Judge David Nelson during the sentencing hearing said the trial answered many questions, but not why Stensaker killed Sjol. Nelson said he needed "to know why," and it wasn't appropriate for him "to close that door on parole."
Stensaker's attorney couldn't immediately be reached to comment on the case.