Suspect arrested in Rachel Morin murder case, Harford County sheriff says

A man was arrested in Oklahoma and charged in the murder of Rachel Morin, a Bel Air mother whose body was found on the side of a hiking trail in August.

A suspect in the murder of Bel Air mother Rachel Morin is in custody in Tulsa, Oklahoma, awaiting extradition to Harford County, Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler said at a news conference Saturday.

“Rachel’s murderer is no longer a free man and hopefully, he will never have the opportunity to walk free again,” Gahler said.

Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez, 23, of El Salvador, was taken into custody by Tulsa County Police Friday night for allegedly trespassing, according to police. He is being held without bond as a fugitive from justice along with a hold from Maryland for the murder of Morin and an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) retainer.

In connection to the death of Morin, Martinez-Hernandez is charged with first-degree murder and first-degree rape.

During the news conference Saturday, Gahler stated that investigators believe Martinez-Hernandez illegally entered the United States in February of last year.

Through collaboration with FBI Legal Attache personnel in El Salvador, investigators discovered that Martinez-Hernandez had murdered a young woman in El Salvador in January — one month prior to entering the United States.

The alleged murder in El Salvador and what investigators said was Martinez-Hernandez’s connection to street gangs led to a “interpol red notice” — an international request for law enforcement to locate and detain an individual — being put out for him.

“Victor Hernandez did not come here for a better life for himself or his family — he came here to escape a crime he committed and murdered Rachel,” Gahler said.

This story will be updated.