Accomplice gets 25-to-life for helping murder OC fortuneteller and her daughter
By APFriday, March 19, 2010
Accomplice to OC fortuneteller killing sentenced
SANTA ANA, Calif. — A North Carolina man who helped murder an Orange County fortuneteller and her daughter has been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.
Phillipe Zamora of Roanoke Rapids was sentenced Friday, nearly a year after pleading guilty to burglary and murder.
Prosecutors say he and Tanya Nelson stabbed the Westminster women to death with kitchen knives in 2005. Nelson was convicted of murder last month and a jury recommended the death penalty.
Authorities say Nelson decided to kill Ha “Jade” Smith and her daughter Anita Vo because the fortuneteller refused to grant her wish to be reunited with a lover.
After the slayings, Nelson stole Smith’s expensive jewelry and went on a $75,000 spending spree using her credit cards.
Nelson will be sentenced next week.
