SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, July 18, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — District Attorney Sim Gill announced Thursday a judge had sentenced Daniel Martinez to 50 years to life for the deaths of Jonathan Fuentes and Austin Powell.
On April 3, 2022, Martinez was at a party at an Airbnb in Draper. The manager of the Airbnb arrived at the property to end it and disperse the party-goers, according to Gill’s press release.
“The defendant and his friend were throwing beer bottles into the street, shattering them. The defendant was confronted by Austin Powell, who tried to get him to stop breaking the bottles.
“After a brief verbal argument, the defendant asked his friend for a gun, then skipped toward Mr. Powell’s Tesla as he fired 10 rounds indiscriminately toward the windshield, one of which overshot the vehicle and hit Mr. Fuentes, who was walking on the sidewalk behind the Tesla. Another one of those bullets hit and killed Mr. Powell.”
The defendant was convicted by a jury trial on May 31, 2024 in 3rd District Court. Martinez was sentenced to 25 years to life for each of the two counts of first-degree felony aggravated murder.
“The defendant showed a blatant disregard for the safety of others as he fired his weapon while skipping towards the victims,” Gill said.
“The defendant’s reckless actions justified the judge ordering him to serve 25 years to life sentences consecutively to each other.”
Gill lauded prosecutors, Adrianna Davis and John Ham, and support staff for their efforts on the case. “I also want to thank our law enforcement partners for their thorough investigation.”
