HIBBING, Minn. — A Hibbing man charged with strangling a woman to death in 2017 pleaded guilty to murder Thursday, according to the St. Louis County Attorney's Office.
Blake Stangel, 53, entered his guilty plea just short of five years since 71-year-old Courtney Fenske was found dead in her Hibbing home. In addition to his murder plea, Stangel also pleaded guilty to aggravated sale of a controlled substance.
As part of his deal with prosecutors, Stangel will be sentenced to over 28 years for Fenske's murder, plus an additional seven to 11 years for the controlled substance charge, which will be decided at Stangel's forthcoming sentencing.
Stangel was first accused of Fenske's murder shortly after her death, but at the time, prosecutors said they didn't have enough evidence to arrest him. But on May 24, 2021, Stangel was arrested on unrelated charges, which led to Stangel voluntarily providing a DNA sample. That sample was subsequently tested against DNA found at the crime scene and proved to be a match.
Fenske was found dead in her home on Nov. 26, 2017, after her mail carrier requested a welfare check. Fenske's autopsy later showed she had been strangled.
Stangel's sentencing date has not yet been determined.
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