Rachel Morin’s Alleged Killer Faces Court, Victim’s Mother Criticizes His ‘Audacious’ Actions Post-Murder
Legal documents disclose fresh information about Victor Antonio Martinez Hernandez‘s activities following the alleged killing of the mother-of-five, including his hiding places and how evidence provided by his relatives led to his capture.
Rachel Morin’s suspected murderer faced the court for the first time since his arrest, 10 months after the mother-of-five’s violent death on a Maryland running trail.
Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez, 23, was taken into custody in Tulsa, Oklahoma last Friday and charged with first- and second-degree murder, first- and second-degree rape, and first- and second-degree assault of Morin. Her body was found in August 2023 after she failed to return from a run.
He remained silent during his video appearance from Harford County Detention Center for Friday’s bail hearing, as reported by FOX News Digital, where bail was denied. An attorney representing Morin’s family described it as an “emotionally taxing experience” to see him during the brief session.
The hearing followed the release of charging documents on Thursday that provided new details on how Martinez-Hernandez was apprehended.
According to his relatives, mentioned in the documents, he stayed with them in Maryland—the same state where the murder occurred—from December 2023 until May 2024. It remains unknown where he was between the August killing and his arrival at their home four months later. Additionally, it is unclear where exactly in Maryland he stayed.
“His decision to remain in the state where he committed the crime is incredibly audacious,” Morin’s mother, Patty Morin, told Fox News Digital. “It astonishes me. It also surprises me that his family didn’t notice the posters we put up.”
Currently, it is unknown whether Martinez-Hernandez’s family knew he was wanted for Morin’s murder.
Investigators reportedly used genetic genealogy to identify Martinez-Hernandez in May. His family also handed over two bags of clothes and a pair of shoes to authorities after he left that same month. DNA from these items matched the DNA found at the crime scene.
Details of the Crime and Investigation
The investigation into Morin’s murder commenced in August 2023, after her boyfriend reported she never returned from a run on the Ma & Pa trail in Bel Air. Her body was discovered the next day along a hiking trail. Later that month, authorities released footage of a man they believed was connected to Morin’s homicide; the video was from Los Angeles, where Martinez-Hernandez allegedly “brutally” attacked a young girl. DNA found at the crime scenes in both L.A. and Maryland matched.
On the six-month anniversary of the mother of five’s murder, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office released two sketches of the suspect and new case details.
He was then captured in Tulsa last week and extradited to Maryland on Thursday.
During Saturday’s press conference, Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler stated that Martinez-Hernandez was not a legal resident and had crossed the border illegally in February 2023 after three failed attempts. According to Tulsa County jail records, Martinez-Hernandez was also under an ICE hold.
Gahler said Martinez-Hernandez “fled” El Salvador to the U.S. after allegedly murdering a woman in January 2023.
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