Charges filed against Mankato man in ‘execution style’ killing

A Mankato man has been charged with murder after police found another man dead Saturday from a gunshot wound in the back of his head.

Guenther Boone Jr., 18, of Mankato was charged with second-degree murder Monday in Blue Earth County District Court.

According to charges, Boone told police he shot a man “execution style” after a deal to buy marijuana cartridges for e-cigarettes went wrong.

Mankato city officials identified the victim as Darious Dashon Johnson, 31, of Mankato.

According to the charges:

Boone told police that his plan was to rob Johnson and sell the marijuana cartridges for money. Witnesses told police that Johnson came to Boone’s home in the early morning hours on Saturday. Boone opened the rear car door and shot Johnson in the back of the head, charges said.

Police said they found Boone at his home and told him that they had two witnesses and security footage of the shooting. They said Boone first denied knowing anything about the death but then admitted to shooting Johnson.

Boone said that when he opened the car door, he saw Johnson move his hand and assumed he had a gun since Johnson was known to have firearms. Boone claimed Johnson had sold him the pistol used in the Saturday shooting.

Officers said they found Boone’s .40-caliber P80 handgun after he told them where he had hidden it.

Besides the murder charge, Boone is charged with a felony for possessing a firearm without a serial number and a gross misdemeanor for carrying a pistol without a permit.

Police said they found a spent .40-caliber shell casing in Johnson’s car. They also said they found another handgun in the center console of victim’s car, which a witness said belonged to Johnson.

Boone is scheduled for his initial appearance remotely on Jan. 9.