SALT LAKE CITY — A man was arrested this week on suspicion of holding a woman against her will for weeks while assaulting her and threatening her life.
Ramone Martinez, 39, faces one first-degree felony charge of aggravated kidnapping, five third-degree felony counts of aggravated assault, and one misdemeanor assault charge.
On Wednesday, Salt Lake City Police were called to a house in the area of 500 South and 1400 West on reports that a woman was being held captive and was threatened with a gun. The caller said the victim had texted him, "begging for help" and saying she feared for her life.
Martinez answered the door, and officers said it appeared he had his hand on a gun in his sweatshirt pocket. They ordered him to raise his hands, he complied, then officers detained him and took the weapon.
Police then spoke to both Martinez and the woman, who they said looked injured with heavy bruising around her eyes. She told them her ribs were hurting and she had trouble breathing.
The woman then gave her account of what happened, saying Martinez had abused her and threatened further harm to both her and her family over a period of several weeks. She said Martinez strangled her multiple times, hit her with a belt, pointed a gun at her head and held a knife to her throat. Court documents say he even carved the number 6 into her hand with a knife, threatening that she "had 6 months to love him or be killed."
During this time, the woman says Martinez threatened to kill her multiple times, including while he assaulted her. She also said he threatened to kill her brother and assault her mother.
The woman said she was not allowed to leave the house without Martinez.
Martinez declined to answer questions after he was detained, but police say he "uttered that he did strangle the victim but that it was during consensual sex."
Martinez was ordered to be held without bail due to the threats he made, court records state, as well as his likelihood of fleeing. Police wrote in the report that he has another home in Arizona, where he was planning to take her before police arrived. He also has "business" in multiple other states, and he at one point stated that he is a millionaire — which police also said would enable him to flee more easily.
The Daily Mail reports that Martinez is a "cannabis mogul," with involvement in a local referral service for medical marijuana patients called Truu Med.
Court records indicate that while he has been booked in the Salt Lake County Jail and is being held without bail, he has not been officially charged in court yet. However, a protective order was issued against him on Friday.
Domestic violence victim resources (free, 24/7, confidential):
- Utah Domestic Violence Coalition:
- Hotline: 1-800-897-LINK (5465)
- Online help: udvc.org
- National Domestic Violence Hotline
- 1-800-799-SAFE (7233)
- Online live chat: thehotline.org
- If you or someone else is in immediate danger, or in an emergency, call 9-1-1 immediately.
