Everything Why Did You Kill Me on Netflix missed out about the Crystal Theobald case

Since Netflix released new true crime documentary film, Why Did You Kill Me, people have clearly been hooked on the story, as it hasn’t left the top 10 list. The film covers the murder case of Crystal Theobald, but Why Did You Kill Me actually missed out quite a few key facts about the story.

In 2006, 24-year-old Crystal was killed by gang members who shot at the car she was in. A local gang, the 5150, had heard that a rival gang had shot at their gang members earlier in the day and were out seeking revenge. They mistook the car Crystal was in with her boyfriend and brother as being driven by the rival gang and got out of their car and shot at hers. Crystal was shot in the head and died in hospital two days later.

The Netflix documentary then goes on to explore how Crystal’s mother, Belinda Lane, who had witnessed the attack, and Crystal’s cousin, Jaimie McIntyre, then went on to create fake MySpace accounts to reach out to those who they thought were responsible. It wasn’t until 10 years later that the final suspect was tracked down.

Here’s everything Why Did You Kill Me on Netflix missed out about the case.

Ten people ended up being convicted for various crimes in regards to the case

In Why Did You Kill Me on Netflix, the focus is on the two main suspects in the case: Julio Heredia and William Sotelo. However, according to The Press Enterprise, ten defendants charged in the case have pleaded guilty to an array of counts, from witness intimidation to attempted murder and gun and gang charges. They are all thought to be members of the 5150 gang and sentences ranged from probation to 18 years in prison.

Belinda Lane made a 16-minute speech in court to William Sotelo

From the documentary, it’s pretty clear that Belinda Lane was passionate about getting justice for her daughter. Another way she proved this, which was missed out in Why Did You Kill Me, was through her victim impact speech and the end of the court case with William Sotelo. Sotelo was found to be driving the car the 5150 gang members were in at the time of the attack, and was hunted down 10 years later and sentenced to 22 years.

Belinda Lane then made a 16-minute victim impact speech to the court, where she directly addressed Sotelo, calling him a “coward” and a “monster”. She then turned on Sotelo’s family, accusing them of helping him to hide for all the years he was in Mexico evading justice. At this point, the judge had to ask Belinda to stop, and reminded her that she was only permitted to address Sotelo or the judge. Belinda apologised. Read more about her speech here. 

Crystal’s boyfriend was also shot in the attack

During the attack, Crystal was in the car with her boyfriend and her brother, Justin Theobald. Crystal’s boyfriend was driving, and her mother, Belinda Lane, was in another car just ahead of them. Her boyfriend, 20-year-old Juan Patlan, was also shot, which isn’t touched upon in the Netflix documentary. According to NBC, Patlan was shot in the abdomen, and then underwent surgery and survived his injuries.

He is briefly shown in some of the CCTV footage in the Netflix film, when straight after the shooting he drove the car to a store to get help. You can see him clutching his mid section.

Belinda Lane is still web sleuthing to this day

If you’re wondering what Crystal’s mother Belinda is up to these days, she’s definitely not given up hunting down criminals online. Belinda now runs a Facebook page called “Unsolved murders in Riverside” where she shares information about cold cases in the area, in a bid to help people get justice. The page says it was set up in memory of Crystal Theobald, and has an aim of “bringing awareness to Riverside Ca. for homicide victims seeking justice.”

Belinda Lane had a brother, who was also murdered

As well as her work trying to solve cold cases, on her Facebook page Belinda shared that her brother was also victim of a murder. In a post, Belinda said: “Kendall Lane is another unsolved murder from San Bernardino, he is my brother, a good man loved and cherished his children to the fullest”. Kendall was 44-years-old, and a father of three daughters when he was shot and killed in October 2008, according to Belinda’s posts. She says he was killed by a “punk” from a gang and was an “innocent bystander” but nobody would come forward to speak to police.

The 5150 gang name is to do with police codes

You might have watched the whole of Why Did You Kill Me on Netflix before realising that it missed out any sort of explanation of what the “5150” gang name even means, which not everyone will be familiar with. According to online definitions, 5150 is slang for “the number of the section of the Welfare and Institutions Code, which allows an adult who is experiencing a mental health crisis to be involuntarily detained for a 72- hour psychiatric hospitalisation when evaluated to be a danger to others, or to himself or herself, or gravely disabled.”

It can also be used to described someone who is on the loose and a danger to themselves and/or others, and is often used by gang members to refer to someone who is willing to put their life on the line.

Crystal Theobald had two young children

Another detail that Why Did You Kill Me missed out was more about the fact that Crystal Theobald had two young children when she was killed, from a previous marriage. Some pictures of her family and wedding are shown in the Netflix documentary, but they aren’t spoken about. Some reports say that Crystal left behind two daughters, but per other reports and the pictures shown in the Netflix documentary, it looks like she had one son and one daughter.

Why Did You Kill Me? is available on Netflix now. For all the latest Netflix news, quizzes, drops and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook. 

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• The mother in Why Did You Kill Me went in on ‘monster’ killer in 15-minute court speech

• Why Did You Kill Me: What is the 5150 gang and what does the name mean?

• Why Did You Kill Me: Here’s what Crystal Theobald’s cousin Jaimie is up to now

• Where is William ‘Jokes’ Sotelo from Netflix’s Why Did You Kill Me documentary now?