The mom of Rachel Morin — the Maryland woman who was allegedly raped and murdered by an illegal migrant from El Salvador — stoically fought back tears in court as prosecutors described the 150-foot trail of blood that led to the discovery of her daughter’s lifeless body.
Morin’s horrific murder is “a mother’s worst nightmare,” prosecutor Alison Healey told a jury during opening remarks Friday as Morin’s heartbroken mother, Patricia Morin, sat in the courtroom gallery holding back tears, according to the Baltimore Sun.
Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez, 24, is on trial for allegedly attacking the 37-year-old mom of five while she was out on a jog on the Ma & Pa Trail in Bel Air, Maryland on Aug. 5, 2023.
“That place that she loved so much ended up being the place she lost her life at the hands of this defendant,” Healey charged, the Baltimore Banner reported.
The prosecutor then told the jurors about how volunteers found Morin’s body the next day by following a bloody trail that stretched 150 feet — after her attacker dragged her lifeless body.
Community members went out looking along the hiking trail after a post on Facebook said Morin hadn’t returned home from her run that evening, the prosecutor explained, according to Fox News.
The two volunteers eventually stumbled upon rocks that had blood on them and followed the trail through two brush-covered tunnels before eventually discovering Morin’s unclothed body, Healey said.
Martinez-Hernandez allegedly bashed Morin’s head with rocks some 15 to 20 times and also strangled her, according to an autopsy report.
But before he killed her, the brute allegedly raped her, leaving his DNA behind at the crime scene inside the drainage culvert where she was found, Healey said.
She was “left to die in a puddle of water,” the prosecutor said.
Her body was left with her right shoe and sock on but her left shoe and sock had been tossed by her attacker.
Her bra had been pulled over her breasts, Healey also described to jurors.
Investigators were finally able to track down Martinez-Hernandez in a sports bar in Tulsa, Arizona, nearly a year later through matching DNA taken from his sock to DNA found at the crime scene, she said.
This was only after the Harford County Sheriff’s Office waded through over 1,000 tips, leading them to an apartment where Martinez-Hernandez’s family lived.
The family gave the authorities a photo, his Facebook profile and a phone number — as investigators collected a sample for DNA testing, the prosecutor explained.
Investigators also discovered how Martinez-Hernandez had searched “Bel,” “Air,” “Rachel” and her misspelled last name online — and had watched videos on YouTube about her death on his cellphone, Healey told jurors.
“I will ask you to find the defendant guilty on all counts, and I am certain that you will,” Healey said.
Defense attorney Sawyer Hicks, in his openings, claimed there were enough gaps and holes in the prosecutors’ case to cast reasonable doubt on his client’s guilt.
The lawyer then argued that someone else who knew Morin was responsible for her horrific slaying.
The fact that her phone was smashed suggested it was a “crime of passion,” Hicks charged.
He also asked where Morin’s boyfriend’s DNA was — apparently implying that the beau may have been involved.
“Rachel Morin was brutally murdered. This was a horrible tragedy,” Hicks said. “But Mr. Martinez-Hernandez is not the man who committed this offense.”
Morin’s 14-year-old daughter, Violet Custer, was the first witness to testify Friday. The teen described how she grew worried when her mom stopped answering texts the night of her death.
Morin’s boyfriend, Richard Tobin, eventually came over and he called 911.
At 3 a.m. early the next day, the duo went out in search of Morin.
“I went onto the trail to try to find my mom,” Custer said.
Tobin took the stand next, testifying about how he called Morin but only got her voicemail before the line started beeping.
The boyfriend — who said he and Morin had spoken for five months before making their relationship official just five days before her death — described how he went to the trail, saw Morin’s car and then canvased local shops.
When he got wind that Morin’s body had been found, Tobin testified, “I freaked out. I cried. I screamed.”
Tobin cooperated with investigators, giving them his cellphone and a DNA sample, he said.
Morin’s 19-year-old daughter, Faye McMahon, was the third witness to testify. The teen told jurors that she had been texting her mom about getting dinner together but decided she was too tired to go out.
The last message she received from her mother was at 7:04 p.m. that evening.
Morin’s mom, Patricia, has been outspoken against former President Joe Biden for his border policies, which she blamed for the fact that Martinez-Hernandez was able to allegedly get into the country and kill her daughter.
The suspect illegally entered the US in February 2023 and was also allegedly responsible for a violent home invasion in Los Angeles in March 2023, cops have said.
He’s pleaded not guilty to murder and rape charges.
The trial is slated to continue next week in the Harford County courthouse in Bel Air.