BUTTE COUNTY, Calif. — Two Humboldt County men have been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murders of two young men whose bodies were later burned inside a vehicle in the Cherokee area in January 2025.
Samuel Ashley, 43, and Wesley Evans, 45, were found guilty by a Butte County jury in December 2025 of killing Juan Daniel Arreola-Solano, 26, of Eureka, and Esquiel Valle-Arellano Jr., 22, of San Diego.
During Friday’s sentencing hearing, the Butte County District Attorney’s Office said Arreola-Solano’s next of kin read statements in court describing the devastating impact of the loss. Evans addressed the court, maintaining his innocence and stating the sentence was not “justice” for him. Ashley declined to speak.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Mark Murphy, who prosecuted the case, described the crime as driven by “greed and stupidity,” saying the defendants were more concerned with what the victims had than who they were.
