Murder case with suspected link to Hells Angels could be eligible for death penalty
The Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office could add special circumstances to a murder charge against a Modesto man charged in a 2015 shooting that would make him eligible for the death penalty.
Jeffrey Velthoen, 35, was arrested Tuesday as part of a long-term investigation into the Modesto Hells Angels Motorcycle Club that already had led to the arrest of several high-ranking members, including the club’s president, vice president and secretary. Velthoen is a Hells Angels associate, according to the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department.
The Central Valley Gang Intelligence Task Force — made up of multiple local police agencies, the FBI and the District Attorney’s Office — has been investigating the Hells Angels for various drug and weapons crimes. During the course of their ongoing investigation, information was developed linking Velthoen to the Feb. 17, 2015, murder of 25-year-old Steven Losey.
A bystander found Losey suffering from gunshot wounds in a pickup after seeing him driving erratically, then crashing off the road near the intersection of Santa Fe Avenue and Berkeley Road. Losey later died at a hospital.
Velthoen, charged with second-degree murder with an enhancement for using a gun, appeared for an arraignment in Stanislaus Superior Court on Thursday.
Deputy District Attorney Wendell Emerson said in court that he might file an amended complaint against Velthoen adding an enhancement for premeditation, elevating the murder charge from second-degree to first-degree and changing the sentencing from 15 years to life in prison to 25 years to life in prison.
Emerson said he also might add a special circumstance to the murder charge alleging it was committed for the benefit of the Hells Angels, which would make Velthoen eligible for the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted.
Velthoen did not enter a plea Thursday. His arraignment was continued to Nov. 7 to allow him additional time to retain a private attorney. He is being held without bail.
Erin Tracy: 209-578-2366, @ModestoBeeCrime
This story was originally published October 24, 2019 at 3:31 PM with the headline "Murder case with suspected link to Hells Angels could be eligible for death penalty."
