State v. Marvin Ernesto Funez-Martinez, C-08-CR-23-000840
LA PLATA, MD—Tony Covington, State’s Attorney for Charles County, announced that on Thursday, January 16, 2025, Charles County Circuit Court Judge Donine Carrington Martin sentenced Marvin Ernesto Funez-Martinez, 23, of White Plains, to 38 years in prison for the Second-Degree Murder of Marco Alexander Pulido-Castro and the Wear and Carry of a Dangerous Weapon with the Intent to Injure. Funez-Martinez will be on supervised probation for five years upon release.
On July 26, 2024, a Charles County jury found Funez-Martinez guilty of the aforementioned charges.
In the early morning hours of October 29, 2023, officers responded to a residence in White Plains for the report of an assault and stabbing. While at the scene, officers located victim Pulido-Castro in the trunk of a Nissan Sentra. The victim was found unresponsive in the fetal position and had numerous stab wounds. Unfortunately, the victim was pronounced deceased at the scene.
An investigation revealed that Funez-Martinez hired the victim to drive him and two other individuals to a club in Washington, D.C. The victim went into the club with the occupants of the vehicle. The victim then drove Funez-Martinez and the other individuals back to their home in White Plains. Before they arrived in White Plains, the victim stopped at a gas station, where he requested additional money for gas. The victim’s vehicle began overheating at the gas station; however, he was still able to drive the occupants to their home.
On the way to White Plains, Funez-Martinez and the victim were involved in a small argument because the victim requested more money.
Upon arrival at the residence, the victim’s engine continued overheating, and the victim remained outside. Funez-Martinez, who was already carrying a pocketknife, went inside his residence and retrieved a larger knife from the kitchen. The victim was checking under the hood of the vehicle when Funez-Martinez returned outside, and Funez-Martinez began stabbing the victim repeatedly. The victim tried to escape to a yard across the street, but Funez-Martinez followed him and continued to stab him. Funez-Martinez ultimately stabbed the victim 59 times and knocked out multiple teeth. After the stabbing, Funez-Martinez dragged the victim to his vehicle and placed his body in the trunk. He then fled to the rear of his residence. Witnesses reported Funez-Martinez’s location to responding officers, who apprehended him that morning. At the time of arrest, Funez-Martinez had multiple cuts on his hand.
During the investigation, Funez-Martinez admitted to the murder. The victim’s blood was found on Funez-Martinez’s hands, the knife used in the attack, as well as the sweatshirt that Funez-Martinez was wearing.
At sentencing, Assistant State’s Attorney Constance Kopelman told the judge, “The defendant was particularly violent, extraordinarily dangerous. He needs to be incarcerated for as long as possible. He committed the most brutal murder I have ever seen. This was an awful way for Marco Alexander Pulido-Castro to die.”
She furthered, “The defendant killed the victim over a really small amount of money that he actually owed the victim. [The victim] suffered. It was just cruel. It just doesn’t get more cruel than what he did to Marco Alexander Pulido-Castro. – He was brutally killed for working. He didn’t get to enjoy his later years. He didn’t deserve to take his last breath on Gateway Boulevard, face to the ground, being stabbed.”
Sentence
Count 1 – Second Degree Murder
• 40 years with all but 35 years suspended
Count 2 – Wear and Carry of a Dangerous Weapon with the Intent to Injure
• 3 years
• Consecutive to Count 1
5 Years of Supervised Probation