RIVERSIDE – Today, in Riverside Hall of Justice, Judge Matthew Perantoni sentenced William Arnold Armendariz, III to death for the murders of five victims in three separate incidents spanning from 2015 to 2020. Armendariz received a separate death sentence for each victim. He was additionally sentenced to 32 years to life for the attempted first-degree murder of a surviving victim.

In July, Armendariz pled guilty to all five counts of first-degree murder, one count of attempted first-degree murder, and eight total special circumstances and enhancements, including gang special circumstances and gun-use allegations.

Several family members of the victims attended the hearing and delivered powerful victim impact statements, describing their loss, pain, and the lasting trauma caused by Armendariz’s violence.

“My son had no relation to a gang, yet his life was decided by low-life gang members,” Bradley Cunningham’s mother said. “As a mother I have a piece of me gone, a hole in my heart that can never be filled.”

“I hope you are haunted by the people you murdered every day and every night for the rest of your evil life,” one family member said. “I do not believe he regrets anything other than the fact that he was caught.”

The series of violent crimes began in 2015, when Armendariz, went “hunting” with fellow East Side Banning Sapo gang members, and spotted 51-year-old Charles Neazer in Banning. Armendariz and another gang member, Samuel Vasquez, exited their vehicle and confronted Neazer. Armendariz shot and killed Neazer before fleeing. The case remained unsolved for several years.

In 2018, Armendariz and fellow gang member Jovanni Martinez followed a vehicle into a neighborhood and blocked it in. Armendariz fired multiple shots into the car, killing 21-year-old Bradley Cunningham, who was seated in the front passenger seat, and seriously injuring the driver, who was shot four times but survived.

In 2020, Armendariz committed a triple homicide at the Banning Cemetery during what began as a family gathering to honor a deceased relative’s birthday. The group present included mostly women and children, some as young as newborns.

During the gathering, Armendariz and his brother assaulted James Lara, 53, severely beating him. When several women attempted to intervene, including Theresa Sanchez, 42, Felicia McCafferty, 48, and McCafferty’s two daughters, Armendariz became increasingly violent, knocking both daughters unconscious. He then retrieved a firearm from his brother and executed the three adults.

Armendariz, his brother, and their mother fled the cemetery in their mother’s van and left the state. Five days later, law enforcement located them in Illinois, where they were arrested and extradited back to California.

With today’s ruling, justice has been delivered for the five lives taken and for the survivor who continues to live with the physical and emotional scars of Armendariz’s violence.