Morehead murder suspect had no history of violence, police say
An apartment unit had a dozen bullet holes and shell casings throughout the home where a 15-year-old boy was left dead and his younger sister injuried.
Despite this, the man arrested for the fatal shooting had no prior history of domestic violence or arguments with his girlfriend, or their children, according to police and call dispatch records.
Gildardo Martinez, 36, was charged July 20 with murder, first-degree assault and attempted rape. Court documents say he shot two juveniles, fatally shooting 15-year-old Luis Jocsan Nanez Lopez and injuring his 12-year-old sister, at an apartment in the 400 block of West Sun Street in Morehead.
Court documents say after returning from a bar, he attempted to have sex with his girlfriend without her consent, and she screamed while trying to stop him.
Detective Steven Justice with the Morehead Police Department testified that Martinez and his girlfriend had no history of domestic violence prior to the shooting, at a preliminary hearing Tuesday.
Luis Lopez opened the door to the bedroom and asked his mother if she wanted him to call the police. His mother said no, and that they would talk about it in the morning.
Martinez got up from the bed and reached for a suitcase. The woman said she wanted him to leave — and assumed he was packing — until he pulled out a black pistol and began shooting.
Police said the mother had no knowledge there was a gun inside the home.
15-year-old found dead, 12-year-old shot
The mother grabbed their 1-year-old son and fled the building while yelling at her 12-year-old daughter to run, Justice testified. She told police she had trouble opening the bedroom door because Luis Lopez’s dead body was blocking it.
Luis Lopez was found dead on the living room floor about a foot away from the door and couch, according to Justice. He was wearing shorts with a gunshot wound to left side of cheek. His sister was shot three times and is recovering at University of Kentucky Hospital in Lexington.
Once the mother went outside the home, she realized she had forgotten her 3-year-old son, and went back into the home to get him.
Martinez ran from the home and was arrested about 12 hours later in Morehead. When police found him, he was ducked into bushes a few blocks away. Police located a gun box and cell phone near where Martinez hid, Justice testified.
Police found a firearm in the bushes, Justice testified. Police observed Martinez with bloodshot eyes and the smell of alcohol on his breath. Despite this, no breathalyzer or bloodwork conducted.
Evidence collected at the scene includes victims’ clothes, bullet fragments, shell casings, bloody bedding, and swabs of blood throughout the home.
The boy, 15-year-old Lopez, would have been a sophomore at Rowan County High School this year, said county coroner John Northcutt.
Man in the US illegally
Homeland Security confirmed Martinez was in the country illegally, entering sometime in 2021. He tried to enter the country three times at the southern border in 2021 and was successful on his third attempt.
The exact date and location of Martinez’s third attempt to enter the U.S. was unclear Wednesday. Homeland Security said he entered without an immigration officer.
“Gildardo Amandor-Martinez is a rapist and cold-blooded killer who should have never been in this country,” Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a news release.
The judge found proable cause to send Martinez’s charges to the Rowan County Grand Jury who will determine if formal, criminal charges will proceed.
This story was originally published July 29, 2025 at 12:28 PM.
