Juan Parra-Peralta and the Killing of Leilani Beauchamp

Juan Parra-Peralta is a former U.S. Air Force airman who was present when 19-year-old Leilani Beauchamp was shot and killed inside his Fairfield, California home on October 30, 2021. He was initially arrested on suspicion of accessory to murder, but Solano County prosecutors never filed civilian charges and instead granted him immunity in exchange for his testimony against the shooter, his ex-girlfriend Jessica Quintanilla. The Air Force prosecuted him separately. A general court-martial convicted him of obstruction of justice and making a false official statement, and he was sentenced to 12 months of confinement, reduction to the lowest enlisted rank, total forfeiture of pay, and a bad-conduct discharge.

Who He Was and What Happened in His Home

Parra-Peralta was 20 years old and stationed at Travis Air Force Base, assigned to the 60th Aerial Port Squadron as a cargo processing specialist, when Beauchamp died in his house on Cascade Lane in Fairfield. He and Beauchamp met at a Halloween party in Sacramento the night before and traveled back to his residence with another active-duty airman. Fairfield police said Beauchamp “never left his home alive.”¹

Prosecutors said Jessica Quintanilla, Parra-Peralta’s on-and-off ex-girlfriend, arrived at the house before 9 a.m., found Beauchamp in bed with him, went to her car for a gun, and shot Beauchamp once in the head.² Parra-Peralta later testified that Quintanilla then threatened him at gunpoint, telling him she would hurt him and his family if he did not help her. He said he wrapped the body in a blanket with her, drove roughly 100 miles south to the Corral De Tierra Road area in Salinas, and left it about 10 yards off the road, concealed in vegetation.³ He testified he refused her suggestion to burn the body because it was too light outside, and later dumped a mattress and other items in Vallejo.⁴

Beauchamp’s remains were found the next evening, October 31, 2021, after the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office received a tip.⁵

Arrest and the Decision Not to Charge Him

Fairfield police announced three arrests on November 1, 2021. Jessica Quintanilla, 21, was booked on suspicion of murder and held without bail. Parra-Peralta, 20, was booked on suspicion of accessory to murder, with bail set at $25,000; he posted it the next day. Jessica’s brother, Marco Quintanilla, 27, was also arrested on suspicion of accessory and a parole violation.⁶

The Solano County District Attorney’s Office never filed formal civilian charges against Parra-Peralta. District Attorney Krishna Abrams said at the time that her office had “not decided whether to charge him or not.”⁷ He returned to active duty at Travis after his release.⁸

The Immunity Deal

Instead of prosecuting Parra-Peralta, the DA’s office granted him immunity so he could testify against Jessica and Marco Quintanilla.² A fellow airman, Damien Ponders, also received immunity to testify.⁹

On the stand, Parra-Peralta described being coerced at gunpoint into helping dispose of the body and told jurors he had led Monterey County Sheriff’s investigators to Beauchamp’s remains on November 1, 2021.⁹ A Solano County jury convicted Jessica Quintanilla of first-degree murder in November 2024, and she was later sentenced to 25 years to life. Marco Quintanilla was convicted of being an accessory after the fact and sentenced to four years.¹⁰

The Air Force Court-Martial

The immunity grant covered the civilian case. It did not cover military prosecution. Parra-Peralta was tried by a general court-martial in proceedings held on March 20, 2024, and again from March 25 to 29, 2025.¹¹

Contrary to his pleas, the panel found him guilty of two offenses arising from the Beauchamp investigation:

Obstruction of justice — one charge with two specifications, in violation of Article 82 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
False official statement — one charge and one specification of providing false information to law enforcement, in violation of Article 131, UCMJ.¹¹

The military judge sentenced him to reduction in rank to E-1, total forfeiture of pay, 12 months of confinement, and a bad-conduct discharge. The convening authority took no action to modify the findings or the sentence.¹¹ The appellate record does not detail the specific conduct underlying the obstruction and false-statement specifications.

Appeal Waived, Conviction Final

The case was docketed with the U.S. Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals in September 2024 as ACM 40684, and the defense obtained several extensions to file its brief. By a May 2025 filing, Parra-Peralta was no longer confined.¹¹

On January 20, 2026, he filed a motion to withdraw from appellate review and submitted a signed DD Form 2330 waiving his appellate rights. The court granted the motion on January 26, 2026, and forwarded the case for final processing.¹² By waiving his appeal, Parra-Peralta made the court-martial conviction and the bad-conduct discharge final.

1
CBS News. Fairfield Homicide: Travis AFB Airman Among Arrested
2
People. California Woman Sentenced in Connection With Shooting Death of Teen After Halloween Party
3
East Bay Times. Witness Testifies Defendant in 2021 Killing Told Him to Hide the Body
4
Mercury News. Witness Testifies Defendant in 2021 Killing Told Him to Hide the Body
5
KCRA. What to Know About Leilani Beauchamp and the Suspects in Fairfield Homicide
6
NBC Bay Area. Air Force Members Arrested for Murder of 19-Year-Old Woman in Fairfield
7
Daily Republic. DA Says No Charges Filed Against Travis Airman Arrested in Connection With Carmel Woman’s Death
8
CBS News. Fairfield Killing: Leilani Beauchamp Family Remembers Her
9
The Reporter. Jury Finds Quintanilla Siblings Guilty of Charges in Fairfield Slaying
10
The Reporter. Quintanilla Siblings Sentenced for Roles in October 2021 Murder
11
U.S. Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals. Parra Peralta, ACM 40684, Appellate Filings
12
U.S. Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals. Parra Peralta, ACM 40684, Motion to Withdraw From Appellate Review