EDINBURG, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The fourth and final suspect in a 2017 murder kidnapping case was sentenced on Monday.
Sandy Lutz was sentenced to 18 years in state jail on a charge of murder, according to Hidalgo County Jail records.
Lutz, along with Gabino Salinas, Benjamin Chavez Sanchez and Hector Ruben Guerra were sentenced in connection to the murder of 32-year-old Jose Angel Martinez.
On Nov. 8, 2017, Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to “suspicious activity” on Mon Mack Road. A man told deputies he went to check on a man, identified as Ricardo Moreno, when he saw blood all over the house, previous ValleyCentral reports stated.
At the residence, investigators found evidence of a violent assault and began looking for Moreno and Martinez, who were the occupants of the home. Surveillance video showed a “white SUV dragging a male subject down the roadway,” and witnesses reported hearing gunshots.
Previous reports stated that Martinez’s body was later found dismembered and buried at a ranch outside of Mission.
The four aforementioned suspects were arrested on charges of aggravated kidnapping and capital murder, records show.
Salinas was sentenced in April 2022 to life in state jail. Sanchez was sentenced to 30 years in state jail in January and Guerra was sentenced to 40 years, records show.
Lutz signed a plea agreement that dismissed the two remaining counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and aggravated kidnapping. Lutz was given a jail credit of 5.3 years, records show.