PIERRE, S.D. – Attorney General Marty Jackley and Sanborn County States Attorney Jeffrey Larson announced today that Matthew Walter Novak, 33, Woonsocket, was sentenced to 40 years in the state penitentiary for the death of Jennifer Ann Gibson.

“This significant sentence reflects the horrific violent actions of this defendant to the victim,” said Jackley. “May we all keep in mind the loss suffered by the family of Jennifer Ann Gibson as a result of this senseless criminal act.”

Novak pled guilty to manslaughter in the first degree on January 3, 2017 for the stabbing death of Jennifer Ann Gibson at a residence in Woonsocket.

This case was investigated by the Sanborn County Sheriff’s Office and the Division of Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by the Sanborn County States Attorney and the Attorney General’s Office.

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