Three people face a capital murder charge in the death of a 19-year-old El Paso man reported missing earlier this month.
Police said the body of Tristan Lee Mina was found in desert area 10 miles off of Interstate 10 in Hudspeth County on Friday.
Mina was reported missing on April 9 after he was last seen leaving his residence around 2 a.m. Just before 9 a.m. that same day, police were dispatched to 500 Buena Suerte Drive when a person found several items belonging to Mina.
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Police went to Mina’s residence and his workplace for a welfare check, but he was not found.
Samuel Rico, 20; Jose Guadalupe Andrade, 25; and Jesse Adrian Martinez, 19, were arrested and face capital murder charges.
According to police records, the three suspects were planning to rob Mina during a drug deal. Rico, Andrade and Martinez were going to buy cocaine from Mina.
Police detectives said Martinez and Rico told them that Andrade beat Mina to death with a baseball bat, striking Mina in the back of the head. The report states Rico said Andrade continued beating Mina on the ground, hitting him four to five times.
They also told investigators that Mina’s body was put inside the trunk of the car and taken to the desert. According to the report, Rico admitted to helping Andrade place Mina’s body in the trunk
The report states Martinez was then dropped off at his residence and then Rico and Andrade drove to the location 10 miles off of I-10 near the Fabens exit. In the report, Rico told detectives Mina’s body was set on fire and buried there.
The report states Martinez and Rico admitted to putting their clothes in a box along with Andrade’s clothing in a desert near west El Paso. The report states the trio then set the box on fire with the clothes they were wearing when they met Mina.
According to the report, there was a fourth person involved with the case who was also interviewed by investigators. According to the report, the fourth person helped the three suspects get rid of evidence, and provided gloves to Andrade. The report also states the fourth person witnessed the suspects burning evidence. Police said this fourth person has not been arrested.
Booking photos for the three men were not released as police said they continue their investigation.
The El Paso Police Department’s Crimes Against Persons Unit and the FBI are investigating the case.
