LOGAN, Iowa — An Iowa man was sentenced to life in prison on Monday for using his truck to fatally hit a man after a fight over mayonnaise.
Kristofer Allan Erlbacher, 29, of Woodbine, was convicted of first-degree murder on Dec. 10, 2021, the Des Moines Register reported. According to a criminal complaint and an accident report from the Iowa State Patrol, Erlbacher hit and killed Caleb Scott Solberg, 30, of Moorhead, on Dec. 17, 2020.
According to the criminal complaint, Erlbacher, Solberg and a third person were at a bar in Moorhead drinking and eating when Erlbacher put mayonnaise on Solberg’s food, the Register reported.
Solberg punched Erlbacher, who left in his truck and made threats to hurt Solberg and others, according to The Associated Press.
“‘It was just another bar fight in Harrison County,’ until it wasn’t any longer,” Solberg’s half-brother Craig Pryor said during the trial, according to court records.
Erlbacher and the third person drove to a cafe in Pisgah, located about 10 minutes from the bar, the Register reported.
According to a criminal complaint, Solberg arrived at the cafe and spoke with Pryor, the newspaper reported.
Erlbacher spotted Solberg outside the cafe and ran him down with his truck, according to the accident report. He doubled back and ran over Solberg two more times, the Register reported.
Erlbacher said he acted in a reckless manner and did not intentionally kill Solberg, the newspaper reported. During the trial, he attempted to have his charge reduced to second-degree murder, claiming he was intoxicated. The sentence for a second-degree charge is 50 years in prison, according to the Register.