Man sentenced to life in prison for murdering wife in 2022

Krystal Frasier KSTP

James Nyonteh (Hennepin County Jail)

A man was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison without any possibility for parole two months after being found guilty of multiple charges for the death of his wife.

As previously reported in November by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS, 47-year-old James Nyonteh was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder, one charge of second-degree murder, one count of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and aggravating factors related to the second-degree murder and criminal sexual conduct charges.

Nyonteh was charged in the death of his wife, 35-year-old Peachu Yates. Champlin police said that she was found by officers lying in the front yard, unresponsive and bleeding from apparent cuts on the night of Mar. 28, 2022.

Court charging documents say that a girl was standing next to Yates in the yard screaming, “he killed her,” at the scene.

Nyonteh was later arrested in Fargo, North Dakota.

Nyonteh was initially charged with second-degree intentional murder and later indicted on first-degree charges by a grand jury.