An illegal migrant has been convicted of raping and murdering mother-of-five Rachel Morin after the jury deliberated for just one hour.
Victor Martinez-Hernandez was convicted of severe charges in connection to a brutal assault on a 37-year-old woman in Baltimore in August 2023. The charges included first-degree murder, first-degree rape, and kidnapping.
He now must await sentencing as he faces life in prison for the sick crime.
Prosecutors wrapped up their case in the jury trial on Friday and the defense spent just 10 minutes responding on Monday.
The jury reached a swift decision, requiring only an hour of deliberation, as reported by Fox Baltimore. The speedy verdict was attributed to the compelling evidence presented during the trial.
Harford County State Attorney Alison Healey has already indicated she will seek the maximum penalty for the 24-year-old killer.
The prosecution highlighted the strength of the case, emphasizing that the outcome was expected due to the overwhelming evidence against Martinez-Hernandez. It was described as a solid and irrefutable case.
Healey also said that Morin ‘fought for her life’ in her final moments.
On Monday, Victor Martinez-Hernandez was found guilty of first degree murder, first degree rape and kidnapping for the horrific August 2023 attack on the 37-year-old mother in Baltimore
Her body had been stuffed in a tunnel drain. An autopsy revealed Morin died from a combination of strangulation and blunt-force trauma
‘She was viciously beaten, raped and ultimately murdered at the hands of the defendant.’
Jurors had heard Morin was on the Ma and Pa Trail in Bel Air when she was dragged into the woods and savagely brutalized.
Her body had been stuffed in a tunnel drain. An autopsy revealed Morin died from a combination of strangulation and blunt-force trauma.
Police say Hernandez had been living in the United States illegally since February 2023 – just months before targeting his victim.
Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler slammed the immigration system which allowed Hernandez to enter the country and remain in the United States despite committing other crimes.
‘The failure here, again, is the immigration system that allowed this person to enter our country illegally and remain in our country and commit crimes in Los Angeles and then here in Harford County,’ Gahler said.
‘We all suspected that Rachel was not his first victim. It is my understanding that this suspect, this monster, fled to the United States illegally after committing the brutal murder of a young woman in El Salvador a month earlier in January of 2023.’
President Trump also weighed in on the conviction in a Truth Social post on Monday night, paying tribute to the ‘beautiful mother of five’ who was ‘heinously murdered.’
Police say Hernandez had been living in the United States illegally since February 2023 – just months before targeting his victim
Rachel Morin’s tragic death inflamed debates about the illegal migrant crisis in the United States
‘Moments ago, the Illegal Criminal, who was allowed into our Country by Crooked Joe Biden, was convicted of the heinous murder of Rachel Morin,’ he wrote.
‘Rachel was a beautiful mother of five from Maryland, and her life was taken at the hands of a monster who should have NEVER been here in the first place.’
Trump said Hernandez is ‘actually an MS-13 Gang Member and Foreign Terrorist from El Salvador.
‘We will never forget Rachel Morin, and are committed to protecting women like her across our Country. We will deport Illegal Murderers, Rapists, and Criminals.’
Martinez-Hernandez went on the run after the crime and was ultimately arrested in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in June 2024 after his DNA was found at the scene.
A search of his phone showed he had searched for the terms ‘Bel Air,’ ‘Rachel’ and an incorrect spelling of her surname after the murder, the court was told.
Morin’s murder inflamed debates about illegal immigrants after details of his previous alleged crimes emerged.
Morin’s mother, Patty Morin, last month criticized the immigration policies of the Biden-Harris administration.
The body of the 37-year-old mom-of-five was discovered in a tunnel along a popular hiking trail in Bel Air, Maryland
Morin’s mom Patty Morin said that her daughter’s death could have been prevented if there was tighter security at the border which could have picked up an outstanding warrant for the suspect in relation to another crime
She shared heartbreaking testimony in congress during a hearing titled, ‘A Country Without Borders: How the Biden-Harris Open-Borders Policies Have Undermined Our Safety and Security.’
‘If they had done the border protocols that were in place but was set aside, just a simple DNA swab, they would know that he had a INTERPOL warrant for murder in his home country,’ Morin said to the House Committee on Homeland Security.
