Jose Antonio Beltran
In December 2020, the Scottsdale Police Department arrested and charged Jose Antonio Beltran and Adrian Arthur Espinosa for the murder of a woman.
According to authorities, a second individual who was found guilty has been given a life sentence for his involvement in a murder-for-hire scheme that resulted in the death of a woman in Scottsdale three years ago. The sentencing took place in Phoenix this past week.
Maricopa County Attorney’s Office announced that Jose Antonio Beltran, 31, was convicted of first-degree murder, along with two counts of attempted first-degree murder and first-degree burglary, in September 2023.
Adrian Arthur Espinosa
On Monday, the judge handed down a sentence of natural life imprisonment, as well as two additional 20-year terms, for the shooting that occurred on December 8, 2020.
In April 2023, Adrian Arthur Espinosa, a co-defendant, was sentenced to life in prison.
According to reports, the male individuals were found guilty of causing the death of a female victim and attempting to murder two other individuals by unlawfully entering a residence located near 90th Street and Sweetwater Avenue.
The victim has been identified by the Scottsdale Police Department as Andrea Marina Garcia, aged 53 years old.
According to the prosecutors, the shooting was a result of a planned murder-for-hire scheme, although the reasoning behind the murder remained undisclosed.
In a press release issued on Friday, County Attorney Rachel Mitchell stated, “This family has been robbed of a lifetime with their loved one all at the hands of a callous individual,” said County Attorney Rachel Mitchell. “Our prosecutors worked tenaciously to bring this defendant to justice, which will keep him from hurting anyone else in the community.”
During Beltran’s sentencing on Monday, one of the surviving victims spoke to the court and to Beltran directly. “So, I am begging you as a mother, I am appealing to that goodness you have in your heart. If you would tell who sent you, you would change our lives, and you will reverse the damage that you did to us,” said the victim.
