"It is the judgment of this court that you be committed to the custody of the Commissioner of Corrections and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of release," said a Winona County judge on Tuesday.
Tuesday afternoon, a Winona County judge handed down that sentence to Adam Fravel who was found guilty of the murder of Maddie Kingsbury. The three-week trial ended last month with Fravel convicted of pre-meditated first degree murder.
Fravel addressed the court briefly saying, "I never caused harm to Maddie and I am innocent."
When asked by the judge if he had questions or anything to say following the sentencing, Fravel responded with, "no, I'm good."
Friends and family of Maddie Kingsbury are sharing their pain Tuesday ahead of the sentencing.
"I don't understand why he thought killing her was the only option. There were so many opportunities to do something different," said Kingsbury's mother Krista, who spoke first.
"I will never forget that gut feeling or pit in my stomach," she added. "On March 31st, 2023, I knew something was terribly wrong when I hadn't heard from Madeline all day. Little did I know that this was only the beginning of the end."
"For my final goodbye to my beautiful daughter, I held her, talked to her, sung to her and promised we'd get her justice," said Kingsbury's father David. "She was in a body bag."
Kingsbury's sister also spoke, and shared what it was like hearing the news of her death.
"I'll always remember how I fell to the floor and I'll always remember the absolute feeling of emptiness," she told the court.
She too, was with her father at the end, "Helping to guide her into the incinerator because we refuse to let her be alone anymore."
Last month, 30-year old Adam Fravel was found guilty of murdering Kingsbury, the mother of his two young children.
Kingsbury went missing in March 2023 and following an extensive search, her remains were found near property owned by Fravel's family in the town of Mabel, Minnesota, near the Iowa border.
Fravel was facing a mandatory life sentence. The trial was moved to Mankato, about 136 miles west of Winona, Minnesota, because of extensive pretrial publicity.