By Patrick Tepoorten

Last October, Anthony Inscore of Rush City was kidnapped, tortured, and ultimately shot with birdshot from a .22 caliber rifle. Now, the man identified as the shooter, Delbert Keith Sybrandt, 49, of Rush City, has been convicted of crimes related to the incident.

Sybrandt was convicted of being ineligible to possess a firearm, a crime that carries with it a statutory minimum sentence of five years. His ineligibility stems from a 2002 felony - controlled substance conviction in Pine County. But he is not convicted for shooting Inscore.

County Attorney Janet Reiter, in a Tuesday press release, explained that, since Inscore refused to take part in the prosecution, the state "reduced the charges prior to trial to the single most serious remaining count that could be proved without the victim's testimony."

Sybrandt remains in the Chisago County jail awaiting sentencing on this conviction as well as a felony level drug charge that was pending at the time of the Inscore incident. Sybrandt is also awaiting a May 29 hearing on another felony level matter.

Another defendant, John Paul Eckman, 28, of North Branch, has pleaded guilty to third degree assault and is scheduled to be charged on May 7.

James Dean Newburgh pled guilty in December to second degree assault and was sentenced to 36 months in prison, which was stayed contingent on a 270 day stay at the county jail. He was also sentenced to 10 years probation.

Also in December, Kurt Jeffrey Erickson pled guilty to second degree possession of a controlled substance and second degree assault and was sentenced to 68 months in prison, stayed to 265 days in local jail, and 25 years probation.

Newburgh and Erickson honored agreements to testify against Sybrandt in exchange for plea agreements.

The Sybrandt case was prosecuted by Assistant County Attorney Joe Cox.