A Pleasanton man who admitted to dumping a Kansas teen's body in a ravine in rural Bates County, Missouri has been sentenced to prison. He was sentenced after entering a plea agreement in connection with the death of his 13-year-old neighbor, Airen Andula. Court records show that Damon Leonard, 47, entered the plea in Bates County Circuit Court and was sentenced on Friday, May 29, at 3 p.m.
Leonard was
charged in December with felony abandonment of a corpse after he transported
Andula’s body across state lines and left it in a remote creek bed in rural
Bates County. The Linn County Sheriff’s Office said Andula was last seen the
morning of Dec. 21, 2025, riding a red mountain bike through the Holiday Lakes
community near Pleasanton, possibly heading into town. Authorities indicated
that Andula’s family reported him missing to the Sheriff’s Office around 6:20
p.m. that same evening.
On Dec. 22,
the Bates County Sheriff’s Office said Leonard called deputies and told them he
knew where Andula was - and that the boy was dead. According to court
documents, Leonard admitted he had transported Andula’s body from Kansas into
Missouri and left it in a creek bed in a remote area of the county.
