In a case that has sent shockwaves through the Salt Lake County community, a father is facing charges for the alleged murder of his daughter, a local sheriff's office deputy. According to FOX 13, 54-year-old Hector Ramon Martinez-Ayala has been implicated in the death of 25-year-old Marbella Martinez, whose body was discovered during a welfare check at her Tooele home on Aug. 1. Martinez-Ayala, who left the country shortly after the incident, is charged with multiple offenses, including Murder, Stalking, and Obstructing Justice.
Detailed in the charging documents was a history of troubling behavior by Hector toward his daughter Marbella, which came to light during the homicide investigation, the behavior which was becoming increasingly controlling and obsessive over time.
Furthermore, text records revealed a disturbing shift in his behavior, more akin to that of a "jealous lover than a father," as KUTV reports. Among the unsettling discoveries, Marbella found a bag containing her items, including used feminine hygiene products, in her father's room earlier in the year.
Surveillance data played a critical role in the timeline of Marbella's last day, capturing the final known video of her at approximately 12:30 p.m. Hector returned home about an hour and a half later, after which point the security cameras were disabled, as noted by ABC4. It's alleged that Hector then took Marbella's phone and disposed of it along I-80 on his way to the airport, where he used his twin brother's identification to fly internationally, evading authorities and leaving his current whereabouts unknown.
