PHOENIX — Two Valley teens were sentenced to 38 years in prison Friday for a 2020 crime spree that lasted months and included at least two murders.
Corbin McNeil was just 15 years old when he was arrested, and James Quintero was 16 years old.
Videos in the player above show ABC15's previous reporting on these cases.
Authorities told the ABC15 Investigators the case was like the Grand Theft Auto video game in real life. Corbin and Quintero killed Amber Patton in Chandler in September 2020 and Matthew Meisner in Tempe in July 2020.
“These ruthless killers have no viable reason or excuse for killing Amber,” said her mom, Marilyn Suchla. “They give her a death sentence and her family and friends a life sentence without Amber.”
According to police and court records, the teens were also responsible for two other shootings, a kidnapping, carjackings, and robberies that summer.
McNeil and Quintero were charged in a 25-count felony indictment, but earlier this year, they signed a plea agreement admitting to the two murders and two other crimes.
“I'd like to say with these events occurred I was on substances, and I wasn't thinking about the repercussions,” McNeil said in court before the sentence was handed down. McNeil’s relatives said he had a fentanyl addiction.
Both teens apologized to the victims.
“I will not ask for mercy but would like to ask you to look in your heart and have some decency in sentences,” Quintero told the judge. “I can assure you I will not let the time I am given go to waste.”
Because McNeil and Quintero were under 18 at the time of the crimes, they were not eligible for the death penalty. They were sentenced to 38 years in prison.
The family of David Vasquez was also in the courtroom Friday. Mesa police said McNeil fatally shot Vasquez, but the teen was acting in self-defense.
Vasquez’s family was frustrated that no one was criminally charged in the death.
