BRONX (WABC) — It was an emotional afternoon in a Bronx court on Thursday after a man who killed a 13-year-old girl back in 1999 was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.<\/p>\n
Last November, a jury found Joseph Martinez guilty of murdering Minerliz Soriano.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors say Martinez sexually assaulted the girl before strangling her, and days later, her body was found inside a dumpster in the Bronx.<\/p>\n
Her loved ones spoke out in court about the devastation they’ve suffered for the past 26 years.<\/p>\n
“Three decades of putting on a face that deceived the world. He thought he could outsmart those investigating this crime,” Assistant District Attorney John Miras said.<\/p>\n
Miras said Martinez thought his schtick as “Jupiter Joe” teaching children astronomy in public places would somehow prevent him from landing in the courtroom.<\/p>\n
He was sentenced Thursday to 25 years to life for sexually abusing and strangling 13-year-old Soriano.<\/p>\n
“I just want to say that I made a promise to Minerliz in 1999, and I just want to say that today we kept that promise. So I thank everyone, everyone behind me. The detectives, the attorneys, I thank you so much just for never giving up on her and keeping her memory alive,” the victim’s best friend, Kimberly Ortiz, said.<\/p>\n
Soriano dreamed of growing up to be an astronaut.<\/p>\n
She was last seen alive in 1999.<\/p>\n
The case had gone cold until November 29, 2021, when investigators had new forensic testing at their fingertips.<\/p>\n
“A DNA sample from a semen stain on the victim’s sweatshirt was submitted and it led to Martinez. Investigators then obtained a DNA sample from the defendant, which matched the DNA found on the victim’s sweatshirt,” Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said.<\/p>\n
This is the first case in New York City to be solved by using familial DNA.<\/p>\n
That means the DNA from the victim’s sweatshirt was entered into a database with the hope that a male relative of the suspect would show up and help narrow down who the killer was.<\/p>\n
“From the start of this trial, I have maintained my innocence,” Martinez said.<\/p>\n
Martinez offered his sympathy to the family but said he disagreed with the jury’s verdict.<\/p>\n
Minerliz would have turned 40 this year. Her father had the last word.<\/p>\n
“We need to keep Joseph Martinez in the deepest pit of the abyss for the rest of his life,” the victim’s father, Luis Soriano, said in Spanish.<\/p>\n
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