Attempted Murder Charges 11 Aug 12

A Mankato man accused of brutally beating an Owatonna man in rural Blue Earth County in July now faces attempted murder charges. 23-year-old Dustin Lee Murilla had been charged with assault, kidnapping and robbery after being arrested in Mankato while driving the victim’s car the night of July 8th. He has now also been charged with 4 counts of attempted murder. The victim had been found alongside a road near LeHillier by a passing motorist, and told authorities that he had been tied up by Murilla and was beaten over the head with a tire iron and a car jack, and his throat had been torn open. The 2 had reportedly been smoking methamphetamine together when Murilla began thinking he was being set up for a drug bust. Murilla had previously served a 27-month prison sentence for a drive-by shooting in New Ulm’s North German Park in 2009, and has been convicted of several other crimes as well. He is also the suspect in a stabbing incident in Mankato this past April.