VISTA — A 23-year-old man was convicted on May 22 of second-degree murder for shooting a Vista man inside the victim’s townhome.
Jheran Beverson faces up to 40 years to life in state prison for the Aug. 7, 2021, shooting death of 52-year-old Shannon Betz, who was found in his bedroom with a gunshot to the head.
Prosecutors allege Beverson and Betz first interacted with each other on a dating app, then arranged to meet at Betz’s home on Aug. 7.
Betz’s roommate, who was on vacation at the time, arrived at the home on the night of Aug. 8 and found Betz’s body. The victim’s wallet had also been taken, prosecutors said.
According to the prosecution’s trial brief, photos of Beverson were found on Betz’s phone through the dating app. Beverson was arrested at his Oceanside home one week after Betz’s death.
Prosecutors allege location data from Beverson’s cell phone indicated he was in the area of Betz’s home around the time investigators believe the killing occurred.
About half an hour after he typed Betz’s home address into a map application on his phone, a car matching Beverson’s was seen on surveillance footage speeding away from the area near Betz’s home, according to the trial brief. Beverson uninstalled the dating app from his phone around the same time the car was captured on surveillance footage, prosecutors say.
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