Rachel Morin's family says they are “grateful” for President-elect Trump's pledge to make border security a “national priority” after Morin was allegedly killed by an illegal immigrant while jogging on the boardwalk last year. “There is,” he said.
Victor Antonio Martinez Hernandez, 23, an illegal immigrant from El Salvador, was charged with brutally attacking and killing the 37-year-old mother of five. Ma & Pa Trail in Bel Air, Maryland — Wealthy suburb north of Baltimore City — August 2023.
“We are grateful for President Trump's support and for increasing border security as a national priority,” Rachel's mother, Patti Morin, said in a statement Monday. “We believe Rachel’s story serves to highlight the urgent need for reforms that will make America safer. I take comfort in knowing that this will help me avoid having to go through the same tragedy.''Loss. “
About a year after Mr. Morin's death, he stopped at the U.S.-Mexico border in Cochise County, Arizona, in August, and the Morin family spoke alongside Mr. Trump at numerous campaign sites ahead of the election.
WATCH: Body camera footage of immigrant charged with rape and murder of Maryland mother Rachel Morin
A photo of Rachel Morin was posted on a tree by her family last night along the Ma and Pa Trail in Bel Air, Maryland, on Thursday, August 10, 2023. Rachel Morin, 37, was killed while hiking the trail. (Fox News Digital Mega)
“The Morins have always believed in the value of shining a spotlight on the border crisis,” said Randolph Rice, the family's attorney. “Now, with leaders elected who share their beliefs, they can begin their recovery knowing that Rachel's legacy will contribute to meaningful change. We look forward to taking immediate action to protect American communities.”
Illegal immigrant charged at 'critical stage' with Rachel Morin's murder: family lawyer
U.S. Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump comforts Patti Morin, the mother of Rachel Morin, who was killed by an illegal immigrant at the U.S.-Mexico border south of Sierra Vista, Arizona, on August 22, 2024. . (Rebecca Noble)
Families hope President Trump's border policies will prevent future tragedies involving suspects who entered the United States illegally.
Martinez Hernandez was arrested in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and is charged with first-degree murder, rape and kidnapping in connection with Morin's death.
Maryland sheriff's “gut feeling'' says Rachel Morin was being “stalked'' by suspect before murder
Patty Morin, whose daughter was allegedly killed by an illegal immigrant, testifies before the House Homeland Security Committee at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC, on September 18, 2024. (Tassos Katopodis/Getty Images)
Authorities have identified the suspect as a possible serial killer after he was suspected of involvement in numerous crimes against women in Central America and the United States, and prosecutors said he would be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. seeking punishment.
Investigators linked DNA found at: Maureen murder scene DNA was found inside a home in Los Angeles that was broken into in March of last year.
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But despite the DNA match linking the two cases, authorities say the DNA collected from either crime scene was not previously recorded in the National Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) system, where authorities record DNA. No identity match could be found for DNA samples either. A sample of criminals arrested in the United States.
Victor Antonio Martinez Hernandez, 23, arrived in Maryland. He is charged with first-degree murder and first-degree rape in the death of Rachel Morin on the Ma & Pa Heritage Trail in Bel Air, Maryland. (Jerry Jackson/Baltimore Sun/Getty Images)
“We are 1,800 miles from the southern border,” Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler said in June while announcing the suspect's arrest. “And Americans are not safe because of failed immigration policies.”
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In what many political commentators have described as a crisis, millions of immigrants will flood into the United States under the Biden administration, with numbers surging in 2021 and reaching record highs in 2022 and 2023. Maintained.
Migrants continue to flow into the U.S. through widespread use of humanitarian parole, but their numbers fell sharply in June after Mr. Biden restricted entry.
Although their numbers are currently declining near the border, a series of high-profile crimes have occurred in 2024 by suspected illegal immigrants, some of whom were not allowed to enter the United States under the administration. was.
FOX News' Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
