Anita Knutson (18) was brutally murdered inside her own apartment on June 3rd, 2007. Anita was a freshman at Minot State University in Minot, North Dakota at the time of her death. She lived with a roommate, Nichole Thomas, near campus. Despite being away at school, Anita she always stayed in touch with her family.
On June 4th, 2007, Anita’s father grew worried after learning she had not contacted any of her siblings or anyone else in her family for over a day. He had been told that Anita's roommate was out of town for the weekend. Anita’s father subsequently went to her apartment building and asked her apartment’s manager to let him into the apartment. The manager let him in, and when he entered the apartment, Anita’s father found a horrific scene. Anita was dead, she had been stabbed to death in her own bedroom.
It initially appeared that Anita was killed by someone who had broken into her home. The apartment’s front door was locked, but the screen on Anita’s bedroom window had been slashed and pushed out of the frame—suggesting that the killer had entered through said window. It also appeared that Anita had been deceased for about a day before she was discovered.
Police initially had many leads to follow. They investigated apartment maintenance workers, Anita’s friends from school, and various people who were seen in the area around the time of Anita’s murder. Despite this, detectives were unable to gather enough evidence for an arrest for several years.
Finally, in March 2022, a break was made in the case. On March 16th, 2022, the Minot Police Department announced that they had arrested Anita's roommate from 2007 - Nichole - for Anita's murder. Since the crime, Nichole had married and was now known as Nichole Rice.
The arrest of Nichole appeared to be the beginning of the road to justice for Anita and her loved ones. Unfortunately, the case went in a different direction during Nichole Rice's trial.
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The arrest.
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| Source: Minot PD. |
As previously noted, Nichole Rice was arrested and charged with the murder of Anita Knutson in March of 2022. By this point, nearly 15 years had passed since Anita's murder - Nichole was 34 years old at the tie she was arrested. The arrest occurred after detectives from the TV show Cold Justice were called upon to investigate Anita's case.
Nichole was bonded out after her arrested. She later pleaded not guilty to the charges. Due to the publicity of the case, a judge ruled to have the trial moved to Grand Forks instead of Minot.
Testimony from trial.
As previously noted, Nichole Rice was arrested nearly 15 years after Anita's murder. The trial did not occur until 2025 - nearly 17/18 years later. Due to this, the prosecution relied on circumstantial evidence to try and prove Nichole's guilt.
Several witnesses established that Anita and Nichole were not getting along in the months leading up to the murder. The two often argued, and testimony revealed that Anita would lock her bedroom door to get away from Nichole. Coworkers of Nichole testified that Anita would often refer to Anita as a "crackhead", "cunt", "bitch", etc. Nichole's defense argued that it's not unusual for roommates - especially teens/young adults - to fight every now and then.
Two people in particular testified for the state, saying that Nichole had confessed to each of them, on separate occasions, that she had murdered Anita. One of the witnesses, William May, testified that he met Nichole at a party just a few weeks after Anita's death. The two began casually seeing each other.
May testified that, shortly after their relationship began, he threw a party at his house - during which Anita's murder became a topic of conversation amongst the partygoers. At some point, Nichole, who had been drinking, told May that she and Anita had fought over an alarm clock that would not stop going off and she subsequently stabbed Anita to death.
May claimed that, after hearing this, he decided to cut ties with Nichole. He also testified that he subsequently contacted police and gave a statement about Nichole's confession. However, for some reason, there are no documented records of William May ever contacting police or giving any such statement.
Several months to a year later, May and Nichole crossed paths again. Nichole told May that she had been cleared of suspicion in Anita's murder. May stated he had no reason to not believe her at this point, and the two began seeing each other again. Although they eventually broke up again later, their rekindled relationship cast doubt on his initial testimony.
A woman named Kristina Holler is the other witness that testified that Nichole had confessed to murdering Anita. Holler and Nichole reportedly also met at a party after Anita's death. During this particular party, Holler testified that Nichole was upset about people accusing her of being involved in Anita's murder. Holler said that she gave Nichole a ride back to her apartment after that. Once the two were there, Nichole told Holler that she stabbed Anita to death.
Holler testified that she, too, contacted police after hearing this confession. She gave a statement about what Nichole had said. She also testified that she still continued a friendship with Nichole after this - although it only lasted for about 3 months before the two had a falling out.
Similar to what happened with William May, there is also no documented record of Kristina Holler ever contacting police and giving any such statement about Nichole Rice. While this may not necessarily mean that May and Holler lied about giving statements, Nichole's attorneys pointed out that the lack of documentation may cast doubt on their testimony.
Other witnesses, including mutual friends of both Anita and Nichole, and Nichole's aunt and uncle, testified about Nichole's state of mind after Anita's murder. Some friends testified that Nichole did not seem as devastated or in shock as one might think someone would be if their roommate had been stabbed to death. In fact, she appeared more concerned about the fact that her iPod was missing from the apartment than the fact that her roommate had just been brutally murdered inside their shared home.
Nichole's aunt testified that Nichole told her that "Anita was a fucking cunt who deserved to die." The aunt stated that Nichole said this just a month after the murder - while many were still in shock about the crime. The aunt and uncle both testified that they, too, felt that Nichole did not act the way they'd expect her to after going through such a traumatic event. They also noted that, over the years, Nichole's story about what happened seemed to always change.
The verdict.
Throughout the trial, there was an abundance of online speculation amongst locals and other people following the case. While many noted that they believed Nichole was guilty, there were also a lot of comments about how the state had not necessarily proven their case beyond a reasonable doubt.
The jury deliberated for about a day before they reached a verdict. On March 26th, 2025, it was announced that the jury found Nichole Rice not guilty of the murder of Anita Knutson. As such, Nichole is now free of any charges related to Anita's case.
Days after the verdict, the interim chief for the Minot Police released a statement. He alluded that the lack of documentation regarding the statements from William May and Kristina Holler hurt the state's case. The statement reads:
"First and foremost, our thoughts are with Anita Knutson’s family and loved ones. This case has deeply impacted our community, and I recognize the emotional toll it has taken on so many people.
Regarding the verdict, we respect the role of the jury and the judicial process. While the Minot Police Department’s role is to investigate and collect evidence, it is ultimately up to the court to determine the outcome. We remain committed to our duty of seeking justice and serving this community with integrity.
As for the testimony regarding alleged confessions, I cannot speak to what did or did not happen with documentation from 2007/2008. I was not in my current position at that time, and those who were with the department then are no longer here. Because of this, I am not able to provide further comment on that matter."
Where the case stands today.
As of now, Anita's murder is classified as unsolved. Many believe that Nichole Rice is the perpetrator and has now gotten away with murder. Others believe that the real killer may still be out there.
Anyone with information that could help solve Anita's case is asked to contact Minot Police at (701) 852-0111.
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