Rachel Morin’s alleged illegal killer left slain jogger’s body along 150-foot blood trail: prosecutors

Community members discovered the 150-foot humor way starring to Rachel Morin's lifeless assemblage connected a hiking way arsenic volunteers helped constabulary hunt for the Maryland mom, opening remarks revealed successful the long-awaited proceedings for her accused migrant killer.

Opening statements began Friday greeting astatine the Harford County Circuit Court successful Bel Air, Maryland, for the proceedings of Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez, a 23-year-old from El Salvador, who is charged with murdering the 37-year-old Morin successful 2023.

Morin's household members, including her mother, Patty Morin, were seen arriving astatine the courthouse connected Friday.

Martinez-Hernandez is accused of raping and sidesplitting Morin, a Harford County parent of five, whose assemblage was discovered on a fashionable walking way backmost successful August 2023.

ILLEGAL ACCUSED IN JOGGER RACHEL MORIN'S MURDER SET TO FACE FAMILY, JURY

Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez is accused of raping and murdering parent of 5 Rachel Morin successful Maryland connected Aug. 5, 2023.  (Tulsa Police Department/ Facebook)

Rebekah Morin, left, and Patty Morin get astatine Harford County Courthouse successful Bel Air, Maryland, connected Friday, April 4, 2025, for the execution proceedings of Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez, who is accused of murdering Rachel Morin. (Leigh Green for Fox News Digital)

Morin was reported missing aft she did not instrumentality location from immoderate evening workout connected the Ma & Pa Trail successful Bel Air connected Aug. 5.

In opening statements Friday, Harford County State's Attorney Alison Healey said that acrophobic assemblage members had gone on the walking way aft seeing missing idiosyncratic posters connected Facebook.

Along the creek line, they recovered a way that resembled a cervid trail, with flattened leaves, earlier uncovering rocks with humor connected them. The brace walked done 2 tunnels, with overgrown brush, wherever they recovered Morin's body, Healey said.

The assemblage members instantly called 911. Authorities retraced the way wherever Morin’s assemblage had been dragged aft her brutal rape and murder. Police besides collected ample bloody rocks that authorities accidental she had been bashed with. 

Healey said that Morin's close footwear and socks had been near on, and her near footwear and socks had been discarded. She noted that Morin's bra had been pulled implicit her breasts.

The Harford County Courthouse successful Bel Air, Maryland, Friday, April 4, 2025. (Leigh Green for Fox News Digital)

Erin Morin-Layman arrives astatine Harford County Courthouse successful Bel Air, Maryland, connected Friday, April 4, 2025, for the execution proceedings of Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez, who is accused of murdering Morin-Layman's half-sister, Rachel Morin. (Leigh Green for Fox News Digital)

Healey said the defendant, Martinez-Hernandez, forced Morin against the passageway partition and raped her. Evidence revealed that the brutal battle had taken spot betwixt 7:04 and 7:10 p.m., she said.

Authorities discovered her telephone submerged successful the water, wholly shattered, on with her destroyed Apple Watch. Nearby, they besides recovered her Apple AirPods.

MARYLAND SHERIFF'S ‘GUT’ SAYS RACHEL MORIN WAS ‘STALKED’ BY SUSPECT BEFORE HER MURDER

Autopsy results revealed that Morin had endured 15 to 20 blows to the caput and had died from a operation of strangulation and blunt unit trauma. Her decease was officially ruled a homicide.

Her assemblage bore bruises astir her neck, and according to Healey, a DNA illustration matched Martinez-Hernandez.

WATCH: VICTOR MARTINEZ-HERNANDEZ'S OKLAHOMA ARREST

On June 14, 2024, authorities pinged Martinez-Hernandez's cellphone and responded to a barroom successful Tulsa, Oklahoma. He yet admitted his individuality aft initially lying to constabulary and providing a mendacious name, authorities said.

When authorities searched his phone, they said they discovered net queries for "Bel Air, [Md.]" and "Rachel"—including a misspelled mentation of Morin's name—along with images of Morin and media sum related to the investigation.

WATCH: BODY CAMERA FOOTAGE OF MIGRANT ACCUSED IN MURDER, RAPE OF MARYLAND MOM RACHEL MORIN

Martinez-Hernandez repeatedly told authorities that helium had ne'er been successful Maryland, lone successful Texas and Oklahoma, they said. 

"You volition beryllium convinced beyond a tenable uncertainty that each of it is the defendant's DNA," Healey said Friday. "I’m definite you volition beryllium convinced that helium had a program to drawback her disconnected the way and conceal her successful the tunnel, cause her successful there, bashed her successful the head, disrobed her and near his DNA."

You volition beryllium convinced helium near her determination and fulfilled a mother’s worst nightmare.

The fellow of slain Maryland parent Rachel Morin posted a tribute to her. (Facebook)

Defense lawyer Sawyer Hicks, representing Martinez-Hernandez, utilized his opening connection to formed uncertainty connected the DNA lucifer and suggest the incidental was a transgression of passion.

Hicks reiterated that the authorities has the load of proof, noting that his lawsuit is presumed guiltless until proven beyond tenable uncertainty that helium killed Morin.

ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT INDICTED FOR RACHEL MORIN'S MURDER IN ‘CRUCIAL STEP’: FAMILY LAWYER

"When you discontinue to deliberate, we are assured that you volition spot determination is tenable uncertainty successful this lawsuit and that Hernandez is not guilty," Hicks said.

Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez was extradited to Maryland connected June 20, 2024. (Tusla Police Department)

He said that Martinez-Hernandez and Morin were strangers, and appeared to beryllium laying the groundwork to formed suspicion connected her then-boyfriend, Richard Tobin.

Hicks challenged the assemblage with pointed questions: "Where is the motive? Where is Richard Tobin’s DNA?'"

Tobin has ne'er been accused of immoderate wrongdoing successful the case.

Who is Rachel Morin?

Morin was reported missing successful August 2023 by her boyfriend, who said she had ne'er returned aft going retired for a tally connected the Ma & Pa Trail, a pedestrian way successful Bel Air, a quiescent and typically harmless municipality astir 28 miles northeast of Baltimore, connected Aug. 5, 2023.

Her assemblage was recovered adjacent the way the adjacent day.

In February, constabulary released caller sketches of Martinez-Hernandez.

WATCH: Rachel Morin execution fishy linked to LA location invasion, assault

The sketches came aft DNA grounds linked Martinez-Hernandez to the determination of a Los Angeles location invasion. Police utilized the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), which led them to a azygous DNA lucifer for an unidentified Hispanic male.

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) collected a chapeau near down astatine the tract of the March 2023 location penetration that had turned violent, injuring a nine-year-old miss and her mother.

ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT SUSPECT IN RACHEL MORIN'S MURDER EXPECTED TO ARGUE FOR A CHANGE OF VENUE

The fishy allegedly broke into the location successful the mediate of the nighttime and assaulted the household wrong earlier helium was chased out. Surveillance video footage captured the antheral leaving, shirtless, done the beforehand door.

PHOTOS OF INITIAL SEARCH IN MARYLAND:

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"I'm going to marque this short, due to the fact that I'm precise emotional," Morin's parent said previously. "I conscionable privation to instrumentality this clip to convey each the instrumentality enforcement for each their hard work.

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"They conscionable truly cared for our household and for our daughter," she said. "They were going to diligently enactment and find the idiosyncratic who murdered her."

Fox News' Alexandria Hoff and Sally Persons contributed to this report.