Two people have been charged in connection with the murder of an 18-year-old in Connecticut whose body was found wrapped in a comforter on a highway, as family say the suspects are the victim’s cousins.
Edgar Josué Chiche Martínez’s body was found on Pope Park Highway in Hartford Saturday morning. He was just days away from his 19th birthday, family members told NBC Connecticut.
The body was transported to the state’s Chief Medical Examiner’s Office and it was determined the victim suffered “from apparent gunshot wounds,” Hartford police said in a news release.
The investigation found Martínez had been shot inside an apartment on Magnolia Street the day prior, and his body placed on the highway for about a day before he was discovered.
On Sunday, two suspects, Sender Soto-Veliz, 21, and a 17-year-old were arrested, police said. The teen was charged with murder and tampering with evidence while Soto-Veliz was charged with hindering prosecution and tampering with evidence.
Martínez’s family said the victim’s parents live in Guatemala and he lived at the apartment on Magnolia Street with his cousins, who are now charged in connection with his slaying.
Hartford police also confirmed that the suspects are cousins of the victim. It’s not immediately clear if the two suspects have retained attorneys.
“What we do want is for earthly justice to be made because God’s justice is on the other side,” Verónica Imelda Martínez Mayen, the victim’s aunt, told NBC Connecticut.
She said that Martínez didn’t show up for work on Thursday and Friday and she knew something was wrong.
Although police did not disclose a potential motive, Martínez Mayen said the family believes the slaying was over money.
She described Martínez as a friendly and good kid who stayed away from parties and had just graduated from Hartford High School in the spring.
“He was the person who always took care of me, despite him not being OK. I’m going to remember him as the most beautiful person I could’ve ever known,” Nimsa Martínez, the victim’s sister, said.