Hector Ramon Martinez-Ayala

Status:

Open

Jurisdiction:

Tooele City Police Department Utah 3rd District Court (UT)

Missing From:

Tooele, Utah

Summary:

Hector Ramon Martinez-Ayala, 54, was charged in September 2024 with first-degree murder in the July 31, 2024 killing of his daughter Marbella Martinez, a 25-year-old Salt Lake County Sheriff's deputy, and has fled the country.

Vital Statistics

Circumstances of Offense:

Marbella Martinez returned to her father's house about 11 a.m. on July 31, 2024, with the last video of her recorded by an indoor camera at 12:23 p.m. as she walked upstairs. At 2:17 p.m., Martinez-Ayala pulled up to the home in his truck, and any video after his arrival was deleted or never existed because of the disabling of the cameras after his arrival. Marbella Martinez's body was discovered in her bedroom on top of her bed with blood observed in the victim's mouth and visible apparent fingernail claw marks on the victim's face and neck. An autopsy determined she died by strangulation.

Additional Details:

During 2024, Martinez-Ayala's behavior continued to escalate with the victim, including placing a tracking device on her vehicle, which charging documents claim he used to locate Marbella and her partner in Bates Canyon. In February, Marbella Martinez found a bag of her underwear and used feminine hygiene supplies in her father's room, and in mid-July, he purchased a tracking device and hidden spy cameras and placed the tracking device on his daughter's car. Martinez-Ayala was charged in 3rd District Court with murder, a first-degree felony; two counts of obstructing justice, a second-degree felony; stalking and unlawful possession of a bank card, third-degree felonies; and two counts of unlawful use of a bank card and unlawful possession of someone else's identification, class A misdemeanors. Martinez-Ayala confessed in a text message to his brother of making "a big mistake" before fleeing the country and using his daughter's bank card to withdraw money. Based on Martinez-Ayala's phone records, investigators believe he went to the Salt Lake City International Airport after the killing and disposed of his daughter's cellphone on the way to the airport, where it was found along the side of I-80. He then flew to San Francisco, then to Houston. There are no cell records after the defendant left Houston, but he used his twin brother's identification when he landed in another country and is seen on surveillance video. Aliases for the defendant include Jesus Alberto Martinez-Ayala, Jesus Alberto Martinez and Jesus Martinez-Ayala. Deputy Martinez was sworn in as a Corrections Officer on January 11, 2024, after completing the academy, and she quickly demonstrated her commitment and passion for serving the community. As of this posting, Martinez-Ayala still has an active murder warrant in Utah’s warrants database.

Case Last Updated:

May 03, 2026