Tooele man killed daughter, then admitted ‘unforgivable sin,’ charges say
Sep 6, 2024, 4:12 PM
The Tooele father of Salt Lake County sheriff’s deputy Marbella Martinez, 25, was charged Friday with murder. Police say Hector Ramon Martinez-Ayala strangled her at their Tooele home on Aug. 1 and has since fled the country. (Melany Valle)
(Melany Valle)
TOOELE — The father of a Salt Lake County sheriff’s deputy who was considered a person of interest in her death has now been charged with murder.
Hector Ramon Martinez-Ayala, 54, of Tooele, was charged Friday 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 is accused of killing Marbella Martinez, 25, his daughter and a Salt Lake County sheriff’s deputy whose body was found the morning of Aug. 1 in the the house they shared, 1224 E. 970 North in Tooele. An autopsy determined she died by strangulation.
But investigators believe Martinez-Ayala has since fled the country.
Martinez-Ayala sent a text to his brother just after 4:30 p.m. on July 31, stating: “My brother, you know (how) much I love you, I made a big mistake, an unforgivable sin, now I’m too scared and I don’t know what to do. I think I will never come back,” according to charging documents.
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. It was found along the side of I-80.
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