Ramone Martinez: Cannabis tycoon accused of kidnapping and torturing woman to make her 'love him'

Ramone Marcio Martinez, 39, of Salt Lake City, carved the number 6 into the woman's left hand to remind her she had 6 months to 'love him or be killed'

A self-proclaimed Utah “millionaire” is accused of kidnapping a woman and holding her captive in his home for weeks. He reportedly beat her repeatedly and carved the number six into her hand — a reminder that the victim had a six-month deadline to “love him or be killed.”

On December 29, Ramone Marcio Martinez, 39, of Salt Lake City, was arrested and charged with aggravated kidnapping, assault, and five counts of aggravated assault in the case, which is being classified as domestic violence, according to local reports. The unidentified victim managed to escape with a single text message to her friend saying she was being held captive. An investigation was launched after the friend alerted the police.“The victim had texted him begging for help and that she was scared for her life,” according to a police booking affidavit, obtained by ABC 4.

Who is Ramone Marcio Martinez?

A LinkedIn profile shows that Martinez is the CEO of Truu Med, a medical cannabis doctor referral service. The company connects patients with doctors that will write a letter on behalf of the patient. Last year, he appeared on a local news outlet to discuss his business.

In 2019, he gave an interview to CBS affiliate KUTV regarding the regulation of the medical cannabis industry in Utah. "We welcome the regulations to come; we don't mind the oversight whatsoever," he said at the time. Martinez is being held in the Salt Lake County jail. 

Martinez tortured victim for weeks

When the police responded by going to Martinez's home in the Poplar Grove neighborhood, he reportedly "had his hand in his hoodie pocket and I could see the outline of a handgun which he was holding onto."

"I ordered him to put his hands in the air and he complied," the officer on the scene wrote. The woman was discovered after the cops searched the house. The victim was found with bruises around both of her eyes. She complained of rib pain and difficulty breathing. Upon questioning, she said that she had been assaulted six times on the previous day alone, according to KSL.

“At another point in time (he) grabbed the victim and held a knife to her throat. Again at another point in time, (Martinez) grabbed a knife and carved the number ‘6’ into the victim’s left hand stating that she had six months to love him or be killed. And lastly, at some point during the day, the victim stated (Martinez) grabbed a gun and pointed it at her head,” according to the affidavit. The woman said that Martinez had held her for several weeks, threatening to kill her and her family, and beating her repeatedly. "During this time she was unable to leave or go anywhere freely," the affidavit states.

On two occasions she was choked to the point of losing consciousness, the affidavit states, once by Martinez's hands and the other by his foot. The woman told officials Martinez strangled her to the point of urination twice. He also threatened her with a knife and gun and beat her with a belt, which caused bruising to her face. At one point Martinez held a knife to her throat, and at another, he "grabbed a knife and carved the number '6' into the victim's left hand stating that she had six months to love him or be killed," affidavit states.

Martinez was taken to the hospital to check for high blood pressure after he was detained by the police where he confessed to strangling the woman, but said it was during consensual sex, the affidavit says. He then later admitted that the night of his arrest, he had planned to move the woman to another residence. Police recommended that Martinez be held without bail saying that he has "many firearms and has access to a large amount of money to gain access to more firearms if he chooses. "(Martinez) also stated he is a millionaire, giving him access to flights and other means of travel which would enable him to flee," police wrote.