A 49-year-old San Marcos man will spend the rest of his life in prison after admitting he shot and killed his partner in her River Road apartment. Juan Manuel Yanez pleaded guilty to the 2025 killing of 43-year-old Victoria Valadez, who was found fatally shot in the head on Feb. 7, 2025. Hays County District Judge Joe Pool handed down a life sentence on Thursday, May 14, and prosecutors say Yanez must serve at least 30 years before he can be considered for parole.
According to the Office of Hays County Criminal District Attorney Kelly Higgins, Yanez called 9-1-1 and told dispatchers he had just shot his "wife." The call was traced to an apartment on River Road, where officers found Valadez with a fatal gunshot wound to her head. Investigators reported no sign of a struggle and said the evidence suggested she may have been asleep when she was shot. Surveillance video from a nearby 7-Eleven, prosecutors said, showed Yanez arriving in the victim’s truck and buying four beers roughly 20 minutes before making the call.
Evidence and arrest
Forensic testing found Valadez’s blood on clothing and jewelry collected from Yanez, and authorities said gunshot residue was detected on items recovered from him. Prosecutors say Yanez got rid of the murder weapon, which has never been found, then fled to Houston. Harris County authorities caught up with him after a brief manhunt, as reported by Fox 7 Austin. Investigators also noted that Yanez’s cellphone was missing its SIM card when it was recovered, a move they said appeared designed to make tracking him more difficult.
Prosecution and sentence
Yanez entered a guilty plea on May 6 and agreed to let the court decide his punishment, according to prosecutors. Assistant Criminal District Attorney Jon English praised the outcome, saying, "This sentence recognizes the truth of what happened in that apartment: a life was taken, a family was destroyed," in a statement from the Hays County DA’s office. Assistant Criminal District Attorney Abigail Whitaker said Valadez’s relatives showed "extraordinary courage" throughout the case.
The life term is the toughest sentence available and requires Yanez to serve at least 30 years before he can seek parole, according to the San Antonio Express-News. Despite extensive forensic and digital work, prosecutors said investigators were never able to establish a clear motive for the killing.
Local officials say the case highlights prosecutors' push for stiff penalties in violent-crime cases, and Hays County has landed several other long sentences this spring, according to coverage by the Hays Free Press. Victims' advocates say the life sentence offers some accountability, though it cannot come close to repairing the loss suffered by Valadez’s family.
