Federal (Texas/New Mexico border)
Federal immigration enforcement U.S. Border Patrol (multiple encounters)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
- Case on record
- 1
- Ended in a killing
- 1
- Prior arrests across these defendants
- 3
Background
Victor Martinez-Hernandez was apprehended and removed under Title 42 three times in January-February 2023. He re-entered the United States and traveled to Maryland, where he murdered Rachel Morin in August 2023. At the time of his border encounters, he was already wanted in El Salvador for the murder of a young woman.
Cases on record
180
days after release
Murder in Bel Air, Maryland
Rachel Morin, 37
Released February 6, 2023. Terms: Title 42 removal (returned to Mexico, re-entered).
Morin was raped and beaten to death on the Ma & Pa trail. DNA linked the killer to the Los Angeles home invasion sexual assault months earlier. Martinez-Hernandez was captured in Tulsa OK in June 2024. Convicted April 2025 and sentenced to life without parole.