MAGNA, Utah (Scripps News Salt Lake City) — The group accused of beating a man to death behind a grocery store allegedly did so because they thought he beat his pregnant girlfriend.
Arrest reports say 41-year-old Fred Valdamar Ortiz was chased down and beaten by a group of at least six people behind a Smith’s grocery store in Magna. When police arrived around 2:30 p.m., they found Ortiz unconscious and not breathing.
The group was allegedly told about Ortiz by his pregnant girlfriend, a dog breeder, when they went to her home to look for a puppy. The woman said Ortiz had beaten her two days earlier and given her a black eye.
While the group was at the house, police say Ortiz drove by on a scooter, leading the group, including a 13-year-old, to chase after him.
One member of the group reportedly told 19-year-old Osyeanna Marie Martinez hit Ortiz with a car.
One in the group reportedly told police that when they caught up to Ortiz, a car driven by Osyeanna Maria Martinez. He continued to run away when the group eventually caught up and began beating him with a pole while on the ground.
A member of the group told police that they asked one of the others, a woman, to stop the beating, but she refused.
Surveillance video shows Martinez throwing two boards at Ortiz’s back and head, and then punching and kicking him. Xandre Sky Hill, 18, was also caught beating Ortiz with a pole.
Three other suspects were only identified by their initials.
Hill admitted to police that he tackled and punched Ortiz, but said another suspect used a pole during the beating.
A suspect, who is related to Ortiz, told police that he beat his girlfriend and that the family was scared to report the incident because he is on parole and “his probation officer will not do anything to lock him up.”
Martinez and Hill were both jailed on charges of murder.
This story was originally published June 15, 2021, by KTSU in Salt Lake City.
