GI teens sentenced in 2018 North Platte murder

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (KSNB) - Two Grand Island teens have been sentenced for the 2018 murder of a North Platte man.

Just over a week before his 20th birthday, Jesus Martinez was sentenced to 40 to 60 years in prison for 2nd degree murder in the shooting death of Ethan Pohlmeier on September 14, 2018.

Martinez appeared Friday in Lincoln County District Court to hear his sentence. He was also sentenced to 15 to 25 years for possession of a stolen firearm. Those sentences are to be served concurrently.

Another suspect in the case, Brayden Turner, 19, was also sentenced Friday in Lincoln County District Court. He received 20 to 30 years for robbery after he pleaded no contest. A second charge was dropped in the case.

Martinez and Turner were arrested in Grand Island on Oct. 12, 2018, after the North Platte Police Department received a tip from the Hall County Attorney’s Office.

Court records say Pohlmeier was attempting to sell an ounce of marijuana for $180 in Centennial Park when he was shot. He later died.