SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio Police Department made a third arrest in the murder of a 24-year-old man whose body was stashed at a Northeast Side apartment complex.
The body, which was wrapped in a tarp, was found two weeks after Mario Martinez Jr. was reported missing by his family.
According to an arrest affidavit, 36-year-old Jamar West is the man who, police said, pulled the trigger and killed Martinez on December 6, 2017.
RELATED: Family seeks answers after murder suspect still not arrested in 24-year-old's shooting death
The arrest affidavit states that Martinez went to an apartment complex on Perrin Beitel Road with the intention of buying a kilo or a half kilo of meth from West.
Police said the drug deal was set up by 47-year-old Reid Kamitono who lived at the apartment complex and knew West.
RELATED: Man wrapped body in tarp, packing tape, affidavit says
According to the affidavit, Martinez walked out of an apartment after he and West had a discussion during the drug deal, but he later returned.
The affidavit states that, when Martinez returned, he and West argued and then West fired several shots at Martinez, killing him.
It took several weeks for investigators to learn what happened in the shooting death of Martinez. Police said his body was left in a pool of blood on the living room floor, decomposing, for 13 days, according to the affidavit.
RELATED: Police make second arrest in connection with death of man reported missing in December
According to the affidavit, West; his roommate Mark Dione Payne, 48; and Kamitono returned to the apartment to wrap Martinez's body up in a tarp so that it could be moved.
An anonymous tip led to the arrest of Payne and Kamitono and prosecutors charged them earlier this year with on tampering with evidence.
Now, police believe they've caught and charged the man who committed the murder.
