Jury finds defendants guilty in brutal 2023 attack on Wilton Rancheria tribal member; sentencing scheduled in April
Two men have been convicted of first-degree murder in the 2023 killing of a Wilton Rancheria tribal member during a violent confrontation that ended in a fast-food parking lot near Sunrise and Folsom boulevards.
A Sacramento County jury on March 13 found Samuel Amorado and Andres Santibenez guilty in the death of Gabriel Espinoza, according to the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office. Jurors also determined that Amorado personally used a deadly or dangerous weapon during the attack.
The case stems from a July 2023 altercation involving a friend of the two defendants and Espinoza. Prosecutors said the injured friend contacted Amorado and Santibenez and asked them to help pursue the victim following the confrontation.
According to evidence presented during the trial, Amorado armed himself with a machete and got into a vehicle driven by Santibenez. Prosecutors said the pair chased Espinoza into a fast-food parking lot in Rancho Cordova, where the confrontation turned deadly.
During the attack, Espinoza was physically assaulted before Santibenez ran him over with the vehicle and dragged him along the ground, according to prosecutors. Amorado then approached the incapacitated victim and cut his neck with the machete, killing him instantly.
The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office said Principal Criminal Attorney TeriAnn Grimes of the Homicide Unit prosecuted the case.
Law enforcement initially responded to reports of a pedestrian struck near the intersection of Sunrise and Folsom boulevards in July 2023. Responding crews located an unresponsive man at the scene who was later pronounced dead. Authorities subsequently arrested Amorado and Santibenez and booked both men into the Sacramento County Jail on murder charges.
Espinoza was a member of the Wilton Rancheria Tribe, a federally recognized tribal nation based in Sacramento County. His death drew additional attention to concerns surrounding violence affecting Indigenous communities.
With the guilty verdicts now returned, the case moves to the sentencing phase in Sacramento Superior Court.
Amorado faces a maximum possible sentence of 26 years to life in prison. Santibenez faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life.
Sentencing for both defendants is scheduled for April 17, 2026, at 1:30 p.m. in Department 40 before the Honorable Steve White.
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