New Haven Man Gets 20 Years For Imprisoning, Torturing Two: Prosecutor

NEW HAVEN, CT — In the fall of 2018, a person who'd been assaulted and tortured while captive escaped their captor and summoned for help as a second person was still being held, and tortured, prosecutors said. Now, Joshua Martinez, 29, of New Haven, has been sentenced to serve 20 years in prison for the imprisonment and torture of two victims, according to John P. Doyle, Jr., New Haven State’s Attorney.

Martinez was convicted of first-degree assault and cruelty to persons.

According to Doyle and court records, New Haven police were called to an apartment Nov. 11, 2018, after the victim escaped and told the apartment complex security guard what happened. When cops got there, they found Martinez and a "second victim, whose wrists and ankles were bound with electrical cords." Martinez was taken into custody at that time and a knife was recovered at his feet, Doyle said.

Investigators learned that "one of the victims went to the apartment the night before and a fight broke out between the victim and Martinez, who was on probation for a previous assault conviction," Doyle said.

"Martinez tied up the victim and over the course of several hours, hit and cut the victim with a knife," Doyle said, adding "the victim also was burned with cigarettes and hot wax and forced to take sleeping pills." Doyle said Martinez also had restrained a second victim with a cable cord in a bedroom.

"At one point overnight, that victim was able to get out of the restraints but when Martinez realized the victim was no longer tied up, he forced the victim back into the bedroom, bound the victim again and tied the door handle to another door so that the victim could not leave the room," Doyle said.

" The victim was able to break free, snapped the cable from the door handle and walked down one flight of stairs to catch the elevator down to the lobby where a security guard called 911," Doyle said.