Almost two years after he was initially arrested in the death of a north Iowa woman, a Mason City man has been sentenced to a half-century behind bars.Â
29-year-old Dominick Degner was accused of killing 24-year-old Tonette Wolfe and then setting fire to her body in Mason City. Court documents show Wolfe was killed on September 4, 2021, and the house was set on fire three days later. Authorities found Wolfe’s body after the fire was extinguished.
Degner was originally charged with first-degree murder, a Class A felony, but in early June entered an Alford plea to second-degree murder, a Class B forcible felony. An Alford plea means Degner is not admitting guilt but concedes he could be convicted at trial. A charge of second-degree arson was dismissed as part of his plea deal.
Monday, in Cerro Gordo County District Court, Degner was sentenced to 50 years in prison and was also ordered to pay $150,000 to the adoptive parents of Wolfe.
