GAYLORD — The Minnesota Court of Appeals has affirmed the second-degree murder conviction and prison sentence of a man found guilty in the 2022 shooting of a Sibley County farmer.
Travis Joel Bauer, 49, of Winthrop was originally convicted of by a jury in Sibley County District Court of second-degree murder with intent on Jan. 8 in the death of Duane Weitzenkamp, then 79.
In a decision filed Dec. 15, the appellate court rejected Bauer’s challenges to the verdict and sentence, leaving intact the 367-month — or over 30-year — prison term imposed by the district court.
On appeal, Bauer argued that presented evidence was insufficient to support the conviction, and that multiple trial errors — including a lack of an impartial jury, misconduct and improper sentencing — warranted a new trial.
The court concluded evidence such as financial distress, trust agreements, witness testimonies and cell phone records, were sufficient. Bauer’s alleged trial errors lacked merit and he had not been deprived of a fair trial or sentencing, according to the decision.
The affirmed conviction comes over three years after Weitzenkamp was found dead Sept. 20, 2022 inside a machine shed on his rural Winthrop farm. Law enforcement determined he had been shot once in the back of the head, according to the complaint filed in March of 2023. Investigators found no evidence of a struggle, robbery or forced entry at the scene.
Bauer had worked with Weitzenkamp on the farm for years, and called 911 to report finding him unresponsive. He initially told investigators he had left the farm earlier to go to an auto-parts store and encountered Weitzenkamp driving toward the farm shortly before discovering the body, the complaint said.
Investigators determined Bauer’s account of the incident was contradictory and cell phone records show his location at Weitzenkamp’s farm during the time frame when the shooting likely occurred. His clothing tested positive for gunshot residue. No murder weapon was recovered, and no eyewitnesses testified to seeing the shooting.
The jury acquitted Bauer of first-degree murder with premeditation on Oct. 18, 2024, and subsequently found him guilty of second-degree murder with intent, not premeditated.
Prosecutors presented evidence that Bauer was experiencing financial difficulties at the time of the killing, including overdraft fees, garnishments, unpaid debts and delinquent payments on property. The state also introduced evidence that Bauer was a beneficiary of a family trust created by Weitzenkamp and his wife, which would have transferred farm equipment and land interests to Bauer after their deaths.
Court records do not show an official sentencing order at this time.