Editor’s Note – The Illegals Crime Report looks at crimes committed in the United States at the hands of those who shouldn’t be in the country.
Week of December 19 – December 25
Attempted Bank Robbery, Multiple Victims, Carjacking
Beaverton, OR
Salvador Martinez-Romero
Salvador Martinez-Romero, 20, is suspected of killing one woman and injuring another during an attempted bank robbery in Beaverton, then stabbing two others while hijacking their cars, and various other assaults. On Dec. 19, Martinez-Romero allegedly attempted to rob a branch of the Wells Fargo bank and, in the process, stabbed to death Janet Risch, 72, and critically injured her 52-year-old daughter, Debra Thompson. Both were customers of the financial institute.
Police say the suspect then stole a car from the Planet Fitness parking lot nearby and stabbed the vehicle’s owner, Ian Day, 26. Continuing the crime spree, Martinez-Romero is said to have driven Day’s car into the city of Tigard and stolen another vehicle near Southwest Walnut Street. He allegedly stabbed that car’s owner, Martha Bashir, 50, who was transported to a local hospital and later released.
Still not finished, Martinez-Romero pulled into a Chevron gas station where he got into a truck and asked the driver for a ride. “He reaches over the window, grabs the lock and he opens the door,” the man who is only identified as Taylor said. “He started to get a little bit agitated, a little bit nervous and that’s when I knew something was up and he pulled his hand up and it was bloody and then I was like, OK, so I should probably get out of the truck.”
Taylor escaped, shaken but unharmed. The suspect fled on foot and was soon captured by police. He is being held on several charges including murder, attempted murder, and two counts of first-degree robbery.
Set Fire That Killed Three Firefighters
Wilmington, MD
Beatriz Fana-Ruiz
Beatriz Fana-Ruiz, a 30-year-old illegal immigrant from the Dominican Republic, pleaded guilty to one count each of second-degree murder, arson, and assault and was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has filed a detainer on her, seeking deportation after she is released from custody.
Authorities said Fana-Ruiz was not happy with her living situation or her life and set a fire in the basement of the home where she was staying, during Sept. 2017. Firefighters responded to the call at around 3 a.m. and were mistakenly told that there were people still inside the residence. Firefighters Christopher Leach, Ardythe Hope, and Brad Speakman rushed into the first floor of the burning home. The floor collapsed, sending the three into the burning basement. Other personnel tried to help, including Jerry Fickles, who was carrying Leach when another portion of the floor collapsed and trapped them. They perished on the scene. Hope died months later and Speakman was hospitalized for 40 days.
Forensic evidence showed flammable material had been spread near wooden dollhouses in the basement. Federal agents said Fana-Ruiz confessed to using body spray and a lit piece of paper to set the dollhouses on fire. She told the police she had been under the influence of Xanax and alcohol and started the fire because she’d been angry at her stepmother and life in general.
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