ST. PAUL, Minn. — A Minnesota man pleaded guilty Thursday to killing and dismembering two women whose bodies were found in different storage units.

Joseph Steven Jorgenson, 41, of Woodbury, under his plea agreement, is set to receive two 40-year sentences on Feb. 28 for the killings of Manijeh Starren in 2023 and Fanta Xayavong in 2021, according to prosecutors.

Each intentional second-degree murder charge carries the maximum penalty allowed by Minnesota law. The sentences will run concurrently, as is customary in the state, where offenders typically spend two-thirds of their term behind bars and the remaining third under supervised release.

Ramsey County Attorney John Choi conveyed that “These despicable acts of violence led to the deaths of two young women and permanently changed the lives of their loved ones and acquaintances,” through an official statement.

Authorities began investigating after getting a missing person report from Starren’s father in April 2023. He told police that she struggled with mental health and addiction challenges and had not checked in as usual that day. Evidence from her apartment, surveillance video, and her social media and financial accounts led police to regard Jorgenson as the primary suspect.

Prosecutors said keys recovered from Jorgenson’s apartment led investigators to a storage facility in Woodbury where they located Starren’s dismembered remains in two separate coolers as well as a large bag.

During that investigation, authorities uncovered evidence of a second victim, Xayavong, with whom Jorgensen had a relationship in 2021. Investigators found her remains in a separate storage locker in Coon Rapids.