Westminster kidnapping victims found

WESTMINSTER The wife, Jacqueline Prado Martinez, and the two kids were found at the home of the suspect's father's house in Westminster.

The suspect is 26-year-old Jose Ortiz.

Jose Ortiz, 26, was seen beating his wife Thursday afternoon outside their home on the 6800 block of Homer Street in Westminster. He allegedly dragged her into his pick-up and drove away. Police say the couple's two daughters, ages 6 and 7, were inside the truck at the time.

"I just see him, and he was pulling her hair and he had her like by the neck and she was crying," said one witness who did not want to be identified.

"He was seen chasing her across the parking lot, and putting her into a headlock, and punching her in the face, and dragging her screaming to the truck," said Officer Van Woodson from the Westminster Police Department.

"Obviously the witnesses saw that she was bleeding. It's unknown at this time if the two children were physically assaulted as well. However, they are a victim of the abuse watching the assault to their mother," said Rachel Archambault from the Westminster Police Department.

Police say the suspect has a history of violence and they believe the victims could be in danger. They have been called several times to the house for domestic disputes.

Neighbors say the couple was always arguing.

"They just fight every night and the cops used to come, like, every other day in the summer. It would just be sad because you could just hear everybody, like, screaming and crying," said the witness.

Police say the suspect called his family late Thursday night and told them he had abandoned his pick-up truck about a mile away at Beach Boulevard and the 405 Freeway. The truck is now being searched for evidence.

"Their family's being semi-cooperative. However, they have not given us any information on where their son is, or the wife, or the two small children," said Archambault.

The kids are fine and the mother is being examined.

Ortiz is still unaccounted for.

Eyewitness News reporters Carlos Granda and Rob Hayes contributed to this report.

 

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