Christina Martinez sentenced to 25 years in prison

LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – The gruesome murder trial of Lowndes County man, which has spanned six years, is finally closed.

Christina Martinez will spend the next 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder.

She was sentenced in Lowndes County Circuit Court this morning.

Victim impact statements were given virtually from Manuel Vasquez’s family and asked for the maximum sentence.

Vasquez was killed in his New Hope home in July 2015.

He was shot and his remains were later scattered throughout the yard.

Martinez claimed her mother, Lydia Martinez, pulled the trigger.

And the mother claimed her Christina shot Vasquez.

Lydia Martinez was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Investigators say it was important to follow this case to the very end to see justice served.

“We are extremely relieved that the case has reached its conclusion,” said District Attorney Scott Colom, 16th Judicial District. “It took tons of work by the sheriff’s office to get it to the point where we could prosecute it and then it took years to get the prosecution to the point where we could get Lydia and Christina punished.”

“It was a group effort to get to this day and to finally get both defendants sentenced, and hopefully the victim’s family can move on and have some closure now,” said Lt. Tony Cooper, Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office.

Christina Martinez cooperated with prosecutors in the case against her mother.

She will not be eligible for parole during her 25-year sentence.