Maplewood man pleads guilty to killing two women who were found dismembered

A Maplewood man pleaded guilty Thursday to the murders of two women with whom he was in a romantic relationship who later disappeared.

Joseph Steven Jorgenson, 41, was charged last year in connection with the death 34-year-old Manije “Many” Starren. Under a plea deal filed in court Thursday, he faces up to 40 years in prison for the murder.

At a plea hearing Thursday, Jorgenson was also charged and pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in connection with the killing 33-year-old Fanta Xayavon. As part of a plea deal, he is also expected to serve up to 40 years for that murder.

The two punishments will be served simultaneously.

During the hearing, Jorgensen confessed to both murders and described how he committed them.

In the spring of 2023, Jorgenson said that he and Starren had a falling out. She asked him to leave her apartment, and he told the judge that he got angry and started hitting her. Jorgenson said he then choked her until she died and admitted to trying to kill her.

Jorgenson said he then dismembered Starren’s body with a razor blade and brought her to his Maplewood apartment before moving her to a storage facility in Woodbury.

Although he made his first appearance in connection with Xayavon’s death on Thursday, he also pleaded guilty to her murder.

Jorgenson told court officials that he and Xayavong lived together in a Shoreview townhouse in 2021. Around September 1 of that year, they had an argument and he started beating her. At one point he thought she had passed out, so he checked her vitals and realized she was dead.

“I felt bad about (the killing) right after, but I intended to kill her,” he told the judge Thursday.

Jorgenson then dismembered Xayavong’s body and moved it to a storage facility in Coon Rapids.

Aggravating factors were considered in both cases, including that Jorgenson was romantically involved with both victims, both murders occurred in the victims’ homes, and he dismembered and hid their bodies.

As part of a plea deal, the state agreed to drop a third case in which he was charged arson, threats of violence and disarming an officer when law enforcement agencies executed a search warrant at his apartment in connection with Starren’s disappearance.

Jorgenson is scheduled to be sentenced at 11 a.m. on February 28

The social services organization Violence Free Minnesota provided the following statement:

“Violence Free Minnesota hopes that the guilty plea will provide some measure or semblance of comfort to the loved ones of Fanta and Manieu. Some of the details that were made public in the criminal’s statements, such as the manner in which Fanta was killed, have not been published before. These details illustrate the risk that a victim/victims of domestic violence may experience in an abusive relationship. We previously acknowledged Manieh’s death in our 2023 Homicide Report and found that she met all five of our documented risk factors for intimate partner homicide: strangulation, perpetrator access to a firearm, perpetrator’s history of violence, victim’s attempts to leave, and perpetrator’s threats. kill the victim

“It is vital that all sectors of our communities work together to tackle and prevent domestic violence, from schools to health and faith communities, and that victims/survivors and their loved ones are made aware of the advocacy services available to them in community We are fortunate in Minnesota to have a 24-hour, toll-free and confidential First Day Helpline available to victims/survivors and their caregivers. This hotline can assist with safety planning and resources at 1.866.223.1111. Relationship abuse is a public health and social problem, and we should never see a situation where two victims are killed by the same person; nor should we continue to see murders resulting from domestic violence.

“We want people who see this story to remember not only the unacceptable nature of these deaths, but also to remember the victims of the murders as they were in life. Manieh was described as a man who enjoyed hunting, fishing and thrift shopping. Fanta was described as a person with a beautiful soul who gave selflessly to others and had a beautiful smile. Both were mothers. They should both still be here. They are thinking of their loved ones today and in the coming weeks as the trial and sentencing conclude.”

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