Cass Lake man pleads guilty to second-degree murder
Sep. 14—BEMIDJI — Montana Oshki-Ayaabe Cutbank, 21, of Cass Lake, pleaded guilty in Beltrami County District Court on Monday, Sept. 13, to committing second-degree intentional murder on Nov. 24, 2020, according to a release from Beltrami County Attorney David Hanson.
Cutbank entered his guilty plea before Judge Jeanine Brand. During the plea hearing, Cutbank admitted to being a backseat passenger in a motor vehicle that had stopped at a Beltrami County residence near Cass Lake on the evening of Nov. 24, 2020, the release said.
Cutbank acknowledged meeting with the victim, C.K., who had emerged from the residence to meet with people in the vehicle. While C.K. was standing outside the vehicle, Cutbank admitted to removing a short-barreled shotgun from underneath his clothing and firing the weapon at C.K., striking him in the head, the release said.
Cutbank admitted to intentionally killing C.K., waiving any claim of self-defense. After Cutbank pleaded guilty, Judge Brand ordered a pre-sentence investigation and scheduled sentencing for Oct. 15, 2021, in the Beltrami County District Court. Cutbank was prosecuted by Dave Frank, Chief Assistant Beltrami County Attorney.
Cutbank was arrested in Duluth in connection with the killing on Nov. 28, 2020, by the Duluth Police Department.
He was previously convicted of a felony in February 2018, for the aggravated robbery of a Dollar General in Deer River. Due to this conviction, he was ineligible to possess a firearm. According to the Minnesota Department of Corrections website, Cutbank was under intensive supervised release as of Sept. 28, 2020.
