Samuel Ashley (left) and Wesley Evans. | Booking photos via Butte County Sheriff’s Office.

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PREVIOUSLY

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Press release from the Butte County District Attorney’s Office:

Two Humboldt County men were each convicted today after a jury trial in Butte County Superior Court for a gruesome double murder in the rural Cherokee area of Butte County.

Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey said Samuel Ashley, 43, and Wesley Evans, 45, were each found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder. Additionally, the jury found a special allegation of multiple murder to be true for each defendant. 

A homicide investigation was initiated on January 30, 2025, after the badly burned remains of two men were discovered in a vehicle on Condor Road in Cherokee. The investigation found that Ashley and Evans had traveled with the victims from Humboldt County to Butte County.  

The victims, Juan Daniel Arreola Solano, 26, and Esequiel Velle Arellano Jr., 22, were identified through DNA samples obtained from family members.   

One of the victims repeatedly stated he had a deal for firearms with Ashley and Evans. The five-week jury trial began November 3rd, and the jury deliberated for about 5 hours before reaching their verdict late today.

Ashley and Evans remain in custody without bail and are scheduled to appear in court on January 9, 2026, for sentencing. Ashley and Evans each face a life sentence without the possibility of parole.   

Ramsey said, “The nature of the case presented significant investigative challenges, but the Butte County Sheriff’s detective unit did outstanding work.”  

Ramsey also noted that the complex prosecution of the case was ably handled by the trial prosecutors, Chief Deputy District Attorney Mark Murphy and Deputy District Attorney Megan Grow, during which 23 witnesses and over 200 exhibits were presented to the jury.