A Manheim Township man has been sentenced to 15 to 40 years in state prison after pleading guilty Tuesday to third-degree murder for the December 2023 killing of Michael Pfender.

Brian Deante Gray told the court he considered Pfender a friend and has “a lot of remorse” for the killing, adding that he would change things “a thousand times over” if he could.

In asking the court to accept the plea, Gray’s attorney said he was “heading down a bad path” at the time but has taken accountability from the beginning.

Judge Jeffrey Conrad noted that the 19-year-old Gray could once again return to society at the completion of his sentence given his young age, and that the best course of action he could take is to “live life as a model citizen and a good man” to ensure others don’t follow his path.

“Don’t let yourself down. Don’t let your family down,” Judge Conrad told Gray.

The court also granted Gray’s request to be eligible for vocational and educational training in prison.

“I hope for his sake he goes on to be the man he should have been,” Judge Conrad told Pfender’s family.

Gray beat Pfender to death in a home in the 1000 block of North Duke Street after the two were involved in an argument.

An autopsy showed that Pfender was struck and stomped on his torso and back, had bruising on his head and signs that he had been strangled.

Gray later admitted to killing Pfender to a roommate and asked for help hiding the body. He also spoke with his father, who also lived at the residence, to ask for help hiding the body. His father encouraged him to turn himself in and called police. Gray left the residence and surrendered to police hours later.