Man Arrested 10 Months After Mom Of 5 Killed Along Popular Hiking Trail
A man was arrested in connection to the August 2023 killing of Rachel Morin, a mom of five whose body was found near a popular hiking trail in Maryland, authorities announced Saturday.
Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez, 23, was arrested Friday night in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and faces first-degree murder and rape charges in Morin’s killing, Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler announced in a news conference on Saturday.
The case had been shrouded in mystery for months after Morin was killed while out for a run, even as investigators connected DNA from the then-unknown suspect to another crime scene across the country. On Aug. 18, weeks after Morin’s body was found on Aug. 6 near Bel Air’s Ma & Pa Trail, investigators announced that the DNA believed to belong to the suspected killer matched DNA collected from a hat left behind by the man suspected in a March 2023 home invasion in Los Angeles. Residential security camera video from the LA home invasion had captured the man, but in spite of the footage and a police sketch, he remained unidentified.
Ultimately, FBI investigators used genetic genealogy methods to identify Martinez-Hernandez’s family members and then pinpoint his location, Special Agent in Charge Bill DelBagno said at Saturday’s news conference.
Martinez-Hernandez is a citizen of El Salvador and entered the U.S. illegally in February 2023, the sheriff said. Authorities said he is suspected of the “brutal murder” of a young woman in his home country and came to the U.S. as he fled accountability.
The sheriff also provided more details about the Los Angeles home invasion, saying that a 9-year-old girl and her mother had been “brutally attacked” there.
Investigators believe that Martinez-Hernandez had spent “some time” in Maryland, but do not know whether the alleged attack was random or targeted based on her running “routine.”
Morin’s mother, Patty Morin, thanked investigators — which comprised federal, state and local authorities — for their tireless efforts.
“[They] gave me such hope that they really did care about our family, my daughter, that they were going to work diligently to find the person that murdered her. At one point, when things seemed really bleak and hopeless, the lead detective said to me, ‘Patience will win in the end,’” Patty Morin said at the press conference.
Morin’s family is “incredibly relieved” about the arrest and grateful to investigators for their “exceptional work,” their attorney told HuffPost on Monday, emphasizing that the investigation is ongoing.
“We’re asking the public to continue providing information they may have that can help this investigation and prosecution,” Randolph Rice said.
Gahler said authorities have initiated the process to extradite Martinez-Hernandez from Oklahoma to Maryland. It was not immediately clear whether he had retained an attorney.
Rebekah Morin, Rachel’s older sister, paid tribute to her in a Facebook post on May 20, her birthday.
“She was vibrant, spirited, always laughing even when she was sad. She was quiet and thoughtful, loved fiercely, sang loudly and danced freely. She was a light that shone bright into the darkness and someone who had NO RIGHT took that away,” Rebekah Morin wrote.
