Sentence for Texas Man Tied to Stearns County Murder Case

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- A Texas man has been sentenced after pleading guilty to a murder charge in a Stearns County fatal drug overdose.

A judge has sentenced 49-year-old Daniel Upshaw to a stayed prison sentence of seven years and two months. He was also sentenced to serve 360 days in the county jail with credit for having already served 119 days.

Court records show Upshaw met the victim at a Maple Lake bar in November 2024. The two men were both former Marines and struck up a lengthy conversation.

At the end of the night, the victim and his girlfriend returned to her St. Cloud apartment. She told investigators she went to bed, and her boyfriend said he was staying up and mentioned he might go to the casino.

At around midnight, the victim's girlfriend tried calling him but got no answer. She also noticed his truck was not in the parking lot.

The following morning, the girlfriend found the man's body lying on the garage floor, and it was cold to the touch. Investigators discovered evidence of cocaine use near the victim and on the tool bench where his phone was also located.

When authorities accessed the victim's phone, they found a text thread between the victim and a contact named Dan. The text thread discussed a drug deal between the two and included a photo of a man holding a baggie with a white powder in it. Through the text messages and video from the bar, authorities were able to identify the suspect as Upshaw.

Upshaw pleaded guilty in October to one count of 3rd-degree murder.