Jury selection begins in murder trial of Minnesota man accused of killing his girlfriend
MANKATO, Minn. — Jury selection begins Monday in the murder trial of the ex-boyfriend of a Minnesota woman whose body was found hidden in a rural area of the state in 2023.
Adam Fravel, 30, has been charged with first-degree murder. He was arrested in June 2023, days after deputies found the body of Madeline Kingsbury in a wooded area a few kilometers from an estate of Fravel’s parents. Kingsbury, 26, disappeared in March 2023 after dropping off her and Fravel’s two young children at daycare in Winona, a southeastern Minnesota city of about 26,000.
Kingsbury’s disappearance attracted national attention and thousands of people joined the search for her. Police said they investigated hundreds of tips and that digital evidence, including phone and computer records, contributed to the discovery of the body. Fravel continues to maintain his innocence.
Prosecutors expect jury selection to take several days. If jury selection does not take longer than expected, opening arguments could begin as early as October 14. A judge granted a request from Fravel’s attorneys to move the case to Winona, where many community members helped search for Kingsbury. The trial will instead take place in Mankato, about 139 miles from Winona.
A criminal complaint stated that after a friend reported Kingsbury missing, Fravel told police that they had recently decided to break up and that she was seeing someone else. Investigators believe Fravel was financially dependent on Kingsbury and killed her after she told him she planned to move out of the home they shared. According to the complaint, a friend of Kingsbury witnessed Fravel being violent toward her.
Fravel’s attorneys argue that the case against him is circumstantial and does not involve a murder weapon or direct witness to the crime. Minnesota Star Grandstand. They have also argued that much of the testimony against him is hearsay.
Authorities said Kingsbury’s body was found wrapped in a gray fitted sheet that was sealed with black Gorilla tape. An autopsy report said Kingsbury died of “homicidal violence,” but it provided no additional details.