Bryant Jon Lutgens, 38, of Burnsville, Minnesota, was found dead in a snowbank in Inver Grove Heights on the morning of February 1, 2021. A 911 caller reported the body on the 1300 block of 60th Street West. An autopsy determined Lutgens died of a gunshot wound to the head; he was found without identification or his cell phone.

Investigators established Lutgens had been visiting a friend in Bloomington on the night of January 31, 2021, and left about 10:30 p.m., saying he needed to pick up some money. The investigation focused on 42-year-old Gabriel Alfonso Sanchez Cruz of Minneapolis after a woman told police she had connected Lutgens with Cruz for a methamphetamine transaction. Cruz told the woman he intended to rob Lutgens; a struggle over Lutgens’ backpack ended when Cruz shot him and fled in Lutgens’ rented Jeep.

The rental company’s tracking system led police to the Jeep in Minneapolis on February 3, 2021. During a pursuit a 9mm semi-automatic handgun was thrown from the vehicle; it was recovered and later linked to the killing. Cruz and two others were arrested after the Jeep crashed. Cruz was charged with second-degree intentional murder; three other men—Jason Beck, Kyle Reagan and Ryan Whitman—were also charged in connection with the incident.

Did anyone in the area see Lutgens after he left his friend’s home that night or notice the rented Jeep between Bloomington and Minneapolis?