Three family members sentenced to prison for 2017 Porter Creek Road murder

Three Lake County family members - a husband, wife and son - convicted of murdering the woman’s lover on a remote Sonoma County road in 2017 were each sentenced to prison Thursday.

The sentence, handed down by Sonoma County Superior Court Judge Bradford DeMeo, comes after the trio pled guilty or no-contest in July to the murder.

Rene Espinoza Jr., 22, Maria Guadalupe Torres, 42, and Rene Espinoza Martinez, 42, all of Clearlake, killed 25-year-old Antonio Botello-Arreola after he began a romantic relationship with Torres while he was living on the family’s property. When Martinez and Espinoza, Torres’ husband and son, learned of the affair, they conspired with Torres to commit the crime, prosecutors said.

Torres lured Botello-Arreola, also of Clearlake, to a remote location on Porter Creek Road in the middle of the night. When they stopped the car, her husband and son pulled up. Espinoza shot Botello-Arreola multiple times before all three threw rocks at the victim’s head. Espinoza then stabbed Botello-Arreola repeatedly in the chest and neck.

Espinoza, who was convicted of first-degree murder and using a firearm to kill the victim, was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison. Torres, who was convicted of first-degree murder, received a term of 25 years to life in prison. Martinez, convicted of second-degree murder, was sentenced to 15 years to life.

You can reach Staff Writer Chantelle Lee at 707-521-5337 or chantelle.lee@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ChantelleHLee