Ramsey Co. judge finds man guilty of killing woman, setting her apartment on fire
An apartment building in North St. Paul where a woman was found dead after a fire. (FOX 9)
RAMSEY COUNTY, Minn. (FOX 9) - A Ramsey County judge found Melvin Bilbro Jr. guilty of first-degree murder on Friday for killing a woman before setting her apartment on fire in 2022.
Bilbro, 42, was facing charges of first-degree murder while committing domestic abuse with a past pattern of domestic abuse, second-degree murder, and first-degree arson in the death of 43-year-old Shanna Renae Daniels. Bilbro opted for a court trial, and on Feb. 2, Ramsey County Judge David Brown found him guilty on all counts.
According to court records, police responded to a reported fire inside a third-floor unit of a North St. Paul apartment building at the corner of South Avenue East and 5th Street North on Aug. 25, 2022.
At the scene, police heard someone yelling for help, but officers were unable to enter the unit due to the smoke and fire.
Once firefighters extinguished the flames, they found Daniels' body. An autopsy determined she suffered multiple sharp force injuries and was dead before the fire started, court records say.
Officers searched the apartment and found a bag with a pack of cigarettes, a pair of scissors, and a broken folding knife, all of which had bloodstains, court records said.
According to the criminal complaint, witnesses identified Daniels' boyfriend as Bilbro, and claimed to see him go into the apartment before law enforcement arrived at the scene.
Officers obtained a search warrant for Bilbro’s apartment, where authorities say they found multiple items with blood on them, Daniels' keys, and her dog, which was covered in soot and smelled like smoke, charges said.
Bilbro’s sentencing is scheduled for March 19.