VIOLENT DOMESTIC AGGRESSOR SENTENCED TO 25 YEARS

Special to El Rrun-Rrun

A man accused of brutally beating his girlfriend in 2021 has been sentenced to 25 years in prison and fined $10,000, according to the Cameron County District Attorney's Office.

"We feel that justice has been served on this defendant," said D.A. Luis V. Saenz. "I am very proud of our staff for fighting for the victim and getting this violent individual off the street."

The case was heard in 357th District Court of Judge Juan A. Magallanes who imposed the sentence on  Amado Martinez Jr., after a jury found him guilty after a three-day trial. Initially, he faced charges of attempt to commit murder, aggravated assault with a weapon and burglary of a habitation with intent to commit other felony.  His conviction was for the aggravated assault charge. 

Martinez was arrested Oct. 18. 2021, by Brownsville police and the U.S. Marshals Task Force.

On Sept. 15, 2021, officers with the Brownsville Police Department responded to an assault call at the 2400 block of Barnard Road, where they found a 49-year-old woman lying on the asphalt in a basketball court area.

According to the police department, the woman had been “severely beaten and had several lacerations on her face.” Veronica Rivas Cespedes, was tortured by her boyfriend – and the assault included including pulling off her fingernails and chopping off her hair – before she  was left for dead from the vicious beating, according to friends and relatives. 

The woman told officers that Martinez was her boyfriend and that he assaulted her inside of the apartment, according to police. The woman sustained a fractured cheekbone and both of her eyes were swollen shut. She remained in the hospital for a week due to her injuries, police said.

A photo of the obviously battered woman made the rounds of social media and among her friends shows that she was the victim of a savage beating. Comments to this blog indicates that the assailant has believed the woman was dead before he fled.

"They told the family to keep quiet make believe that she was dead so they could make an arrest," said a family friend. 

Her co-workers at the lounge where she worked held a fundraiser to help her with medical expenses.

Police obtained an arrest warrant for Martinez and he was taken into custody. His bond was set at $1 million and then raised to $3 million due to the extreme violent character of the offense.

On April 7, Martinez had entered a plea of not guilty.