Salinas cheer coach killer sentenced to 35 years to life in prison
SALINAS, Calif. (KION-TV): 24-year-old Jacob Bustamantez has been sentenced to 35 years to life in prison for the murder of Salinas cheer coach, Faith Valenzuela.
Bustamantez plead guilty to second-degree murder for killing his former girlfriend, Valenzuela.
According to the D.A.'s office, Valenzuela picked up Bustamantez on July 5, 2022 just before 3 a.m. in the Downtown area of Salinas.
While driving at around 3:10 a.m., the D.A.'s office said Bustamantez shot Valenzuela, causing her to crash against a wooden fence.
Bustamantez then ran from the scene before being arrested later.
He initially denied being in contact with Valenzuela before later admitting to shooting and killing her.
Man accused of murdering Salinas cheer coach will be held to answer charges
The man accused of murdering an Everett Alvarez High School cheer coach pleaded not guilty in a Salinas courtroom Wednesday morning during an arraignment on information hearing.
Jacob Anthony Bustamantez will go to trial in the near future for wilful, deliberate, pre-meditated murder, with a special allegation of using a personal firearm to cause great bodily injury. He is being charged with murdering Faith Valenzuela, whose body was found in a car that crashed into a fence on Natividad Road and Lunsford Drive, per our reporter at the courthouse.
Court documents obtained by KION state that Valenzuela was found with an entry wound 4 inches below her right armpit and an exit wound 4 inches below her left armpit. The post-mortem examination revealed Faith's cause of death was a single bullet to the chest.
A Salians Police Officer at the scene described finding an empty 9mm casing on the floor of the passenger side of the vehcile and a 9mm bullet on the passenger side seat. Police said that Faith was found slumped over the driver and passenger seat of the car.
Police said that they located a 9mm semi-automatic pistol on the roof of a home near the crash site. Located near the gun were cotton gloves that looked like they had not been there for very long.
Police also noted that a magazine that fit the 9mm pistol was found, as well as footprints leading to a discarded smartphone. The phone was later identified as belonging to a number that had texted Faith on the morning of July 5th.
The man labeled as Ace on Faith's phone asked to be picked up from California Street at 3 a.m. and Faith responded she would pick him up. Police said the phone found near the crime scene belonged to Bustamantez.
Bustamantez will next be in court on April 12.
Man accused of murdering Everett Alvarez High School cheer coach pleads not guilty
UPDATE JULY 11, 2022, at 1:43 p.m. The man who is accused of murdering a Salinas mother the morning after the 4th of July has pled not guilty in court on Monday.
Jacob Anthony Bustamantez will be appointed a public defender and his bail is set at $2 million, according to our reporter on the scene.
His next court appearance is scheduled for July 29th in Salinas.
A gofundme has been set up to help Faith's 10-year-old daughter. You can donate here.
DA: Murder charge filed for man suspected of killing Everett Alvarez High School cheer coach
The Monterey County District Attorney's Office said a murder charge has been filed Monday against the man accused of murdering Faith Valenzuela the day after the 4th of July.
Jacob Anthony Bustamantez will be charged with murder utilizing a firearm for allegedly murdering Valenzuela, according to the DA's Office.
Bustamantez will be arraigned Monday at the Monterey County District Attorney's Office at 1:30 p.m in Salinas.
A gofundme has been set up to help Faith's 10-year-old daughter. You can donate here.
Police: Man arrested in murder of Everett Alvarez High School cheer coach knew the victim
UPDATE JULY 8, 2022, at 2:09 p.m.-- Salinas Police informed KION on Friday that Bustamante knew Valenzuela, and they were together when Valenzuela was shot multiple times.
They were also together in the car Valenzuela was found shot in at some point in the night, said police.
Whether Valenzuela was shot inside or outside the car, or at a separate location has yet to be answered by investigators. The Monterey County District Attorney's Office has yet to arraign Bustamante but has 72 hours to do so.
Bustamante is in Monterey County Jail on a $1,000,000 bail, according to the Monterey County arrest logs.
According to court documents from a previous misdemeanor in April Bustamante also spells his last name as either Bustamantez or Bustamontez.
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UPDATE JULY 7, 2022, at 10:50 p.m.-- A man has been arrested in possible relation to the murder of Salinas mother.
Jacob Anthony Bustamante, 22, was arrested Thursday and booked into Monterey County Jail for the murder of Faith Valenzuela, said Salinas Police. He was found in Salinas when he was arrested by Salinas Police Detectives and Salinas Police Violence Suppression Task Force members.
A gofundme has been set up to help Faith's daughter. You can donate here.
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UPDATE JULY 6, 2022, at 11:21 a.m.-- Salinas Police said a woman died of gunshot wounds after being found inside a vehicle on Natividad Road and Lunsford Drive Tuesday morning.
A Marina Police unit said they saw a crashed car at around 3:15 a.m. on Natividad and Lunsford Drive after leaving a local hospital.
Salinas Police arrived and later identified her as Faith Elizabeth Valenzuela, 29. She was not breathing or conscious when police attempted CPR.
She was found with gunshot wounds and was taken to the hospital for treatment but later died of her injuries, said police. Nobody has been booked for murder in the county logs as of 4:33 p.m.
Police are looking for a suspect but are unsure who could have killed her. Police do not know if the shots were fired from inside or outside the car, or if she was coming back from a party.
Valenzuela leaves behind a 10-year-old who is in complete shock at the loss of their mom, said a family friend.
"We were notified that the person found early Tuesday morning on Natividad road victim of a shooting was identified as the EAHS cheer advisor," said Superintendent for Salinas Union High School District Dan Burns. "School staff called a meeting of the cheer squad yesterday to discuss the tragedy and provide grief support."
Salinas Police say there is no threat to the public but have yet to ID a suspect.
This is an ongoing investigation.
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The Monterey County Coroner's Office tells KION that a criminal investigation is taking place after a dead body was found on Natividad Road on Lunsford Drive.
The coroner's office wouldn't tell us more as this is a criminal investigation.
We contacted Salinas Police, who told us they would release more information shortly.
