Man Sentenced For Killing Teen After She Visited His Garage Sale

On May 15, 2023, Arthur Jensen, a 53-year-old man from Sheldon, Illinois, was sentenced to 50 years in prison for murdering teenager Adara J. Bunn in 2019. The Iroquois County Assistant State's Attorney Michael Quinlan told PEOPLE, "This is one of the worst murder cases I have ever seen.”

Adara J. Bunn was 17 years old when she went with her mom to a garage sale at Jensen’s home on Aug. 2, 2019. The teen loved Disney and collected memorabilia, and she went to garage sales looking for items for her collection. At Jensen’s yard sale, she purchased Pocahontas cups, and Jensen told her to come back later for more.

On August 5, Bunn came back to the Jensen home to see if there was more Disney merch she could buy. Jensen’s wife, who she thought was going to sell her the memorabilia, was out of town, but Jensen told her he had more Pocahontas cups for her to buy later that day.

When Bunn came back for the cups, he lured her into his home and strangled her. Neighbors heard the young girl’s screams and called for help. By the time help came, it was too late.

When police arrived, Jensen was standing outside his home. He told officers, “There’s a girl inside, and I strangled her,” according to the Daily Journal.

Police found Bunn dead inside the home, and Jensen was immediately arrested. Bunn’s autopsy revealed that her cause of death was strangulation.

Jensen was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in March. Then, on May 15, Circuit Judge Michael Sabol sentenced Jensen to serve 50 years in prison for Bunn’s murder, and he will be required to serve 100-percent of his sentence. He was given credit for the 1,380 days he has already served in the Iroquois County Jail. WCIA reports that he will be 100 years old when he is released, if he reaches that age.

At the time of her death, Bunn was a dedicated student at Milford High School who would have been going into her junior year in the fall. Nicknamed Sissy, she lived with her family in Sheldon. PEOPLE reported that the young girl planned to be a veterinarian. According to her obituary, she loved reading and going to school, and she was described as an all-around joy to everyone around her.