A Turlock teen was sentenced in Stanislaus County Superior Court on Monday for the 2010 murder of 21-year-old Chaz Bettencourt.
Bettencourt was shot and killed outside of a Riverbank AMPM by multiple suspects on Aug. 5, 2010. Turlock Diaz, 19, of Turlock, was sentenced to 52 years and 6 months to life for the murder.
Daniel Pantoja, 23, of Riverbank, was also convicted in Bettencourt’s murder and sentenced to 27 years and 6 months to life.
Diaz, who was 14 years old at the time of the murder, will be over 60 years old by the time he is eligible for parole. California law requires felons convicted of violent crimes, such as murder, are required to serve 85 percent of their term before they are eligible for parole.
A third suspect in the murder, Jah-Kari Phyall, was acquitted of Bettencourt’s shooting death.
Bettencourt had stopped at the AMPM in Riverbank with a friend when they were confronted by multiple suspects. During the confrontation, Bettencourt was shot multiple times by the suspects.
In 2012, a petition was started to “Free Turlock Diaz,” however the petition only received 125 signatures from supporters. The petition argued that the then-14-year-old was under the influence of a Four Loko and could not be responsible for his actions.
Daniel Pantoja, 23, of Riverbank, was also convicted in Bettencourt’s murder and sentenced to 27 years and 6 months to life.
Good. They should do life. They took a life for NO reason and they honestly deserve the death penalty.. Sorry but where were this kids parents. The article said their son was under the influence of others. Um then WHY were you not a parent and make their kid stay away from bad kids… DUH. Its part the parents fault and part the kids fault. I hope they never get paroled
Why dont you just use youR realy name
You already stated it on fb
Adrienne Bayless
GOOD. I hope they never get paroled.
Where were their parents during this. no
wait.. Their innocent angels right.. They
murdered someone so they deserve the
death p
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He was under the influence of alcohol, four loko arent people.. its a drink haha
Sad situation all around. 3lives lost at young ages now these boys will live with the loss of their own lives..
I think the death penalty is needed in this case. (Not the sit on death row for years but true death in a timely manner) Why should the honest hard-working ppl have to support these killers? Think of how much money the USA could save by eliminating these killers.
When you oppose publicly funded abortion, you condone people like Turlocko Diaz going around robbing & killing. If we had paid his mother a little $ to get fixed, we could have saved society alot of pain and expense.
these kids got what was coming to them as well as there sick parents that chose to raise them this way. Pray for the remaining siblings and the life they have too. Your responsible for there actions till they are 18 maybe you should of taught them right from wrong and gangs are bad! No remorse from any of them well right back at them!
Kalifornia need to quit giving the criminal more rights and start executing these douche nozzles
more of this to come. Get ready for another economic downturn. Better prepare now while you still can. Store food, water, and purchase a firearm for self-defense.
Maybe they are getting what they deserve, BUT the third guy is out running free and he had as much to do with this case and outcome as the Pantoja kid. The only one with the gun that shot and killed is the Diaz kid. ????? NOT EQUALITY IN OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM JUST CUZ ONE OF THEM WAS A TELLER AND NOT A BANK TELLER!
im so glad everyone on this page is perfect. Although the taking of a life is unacceptable stop blaming the family and parents. This is a unfortunate situation. But writing off the life of a young man is just as bad! There is nobody here that is saintly in gods eyes! Let God judge this boy! I know I will get hate responses for this but I don’t care! I’ve seen people get a lot less time for worse crimes! May God Bless you Turlock Diaz and know some people don’t hate for the past but will pray for a bright future!!!!!!
Not blaming it on the parents but know this for a kid to grow up and do something like this he never had a chance. Simplt a product of his environment. His parents which just ask you’re local police department if they know them if perhaps they are involved with the court system. Sad but true an uneducated child in a bad environment can lead to bad decisions
Theresa…..I bet if Turloco murdered one of YOUR loved ones or YOUR kids, you wouldn’t be so forgiving. Stop being so sanctimonious and try to put yourself in their shoes. And no, nobody’s perfect, but most of us don’t go around randomly murdering innocent people. And yes, it is partly the family’s fault for not teaching the kid right from wrong and letting a 14 year old run the streets after midnight. And yes, he’s obviously uneducated, but again that’s on his family and it’s on him. There’s plenty of education available. We have public schools. Libraries are free—I was dirt poor as a kid and spent alot of time in libraries because I loved to learn and read. There’s no excuse for being uneducated in this country. People like this are uneducated because they don’t value education.
Excuse me mr guest ” I don’t have the round ones to leave my name.” I have been in the middle of gang violence I was once 14 and running the streets. You can’t say anything till you have been in one of these kids shoes!! my cousin was killed because of gang violence,. Yes I fogive the person who did it because I cannot judge! The lord preaches forgiveness! Maybe you should look up the word. I pray to God that nobody has to go through or see what I have seen in my life. But again I am not God I will not judge! So hate me!! I’m educated! Work to support my children. I hate to see any young life lost and in this situation 3 have been lost. It is a violent world we live in but it is you Mr Guesty and people like you that are breeding hate!!! Not me who mourns for the souls of the children!
Turdlock is a typical jealous vato like the ones I grew up around. They see someone like Chaz who maybe is in a nicer car or wearing nicer clothes and they get jealous. They are too stupid and lazy to better themselves, so they steal and destroy what others have. They can’t think for themselves so they get in packs like dogs and their gang does thinking for them. They and their families are like this because they are lowlifes who don’t aspire to more.