News

Actions

Search for gun in connection with double murder to pick back up in new location

Posted at 1:16 PM, Nov 15, 2017
and last updated 2019-04-02 11:43:40-04

On Wednesday afternoon, the McLennan County Sheriff’s Office stopped searching the Brazos River for a weapon potentially used in the double murder of a mother and her young daughter.

Divers discontinued their search on the south side of loop 340 for the .22 caliber after looking for it for 17 hours. However, they did not locate the weapon during the two-day operation.

The sheriff said the search will pick back up in a new location in a few days, but they will not be searching for the weapon on Thursday. 

Valarie Martinez and her daughter Azariah Martinezw ere found deceased at Tradinghouse Creek Reservoir in Hallsburg. The suspected killer Christopher Weiss, who is the father of the child, was arrested last week.< /p>

“This is a cold-blooded double murder that touched all of us. Such a heartbreaker. I just want the family and friends to know that we are with them and this is going to continue. We are not leaving any stone unturned,” Sheriff Parnell McNamara said.

He added Weiss was in secured lockdown at the McLennan County Jail facing capital murder charges. When Central Texas News Now asked the sheriff to elaborate on it, he didn't provide any additional information. He only said that the Sheriff’s Office had to keep all inmates secured.

As far as the search, McNamara said that they will no longer search in the Brazos and plan on looking in other locations. 

"We are doing a good search underwater, which is a square inch in a certain area," McNamara said. "I've been told if there is a dime on the bottom, they will find it."

The search on Wednesday happened as a memorial service for the 24-year-old and her child took place at Oakcrest Funeral Home in Waco. 

"This is one of the saddest things we've had to deal with, a 1-year-old child gunned down like that, an innocent mother shot in cold blood. Just the worst of the worst," McNamara said.

He said Weiss is expected to face charges even if they don’t find the weapon.

"We have a good case against this creep and we are going to continue to build it. We do have a very good case against him,” McNamara said.

The search will resume once crews have rested. The Department of Public Safety and the Texas Game Wardens assisted the Sheriff's Office with the search.