Girl left in dumpster in The Bronx. Her attacker hid in plain sight for 22 years. – Minerliz Soriano

Police in the Bronx are baffled at the murder of a teenage girl. Her body was found in a dumpster several days after she disappeared. Thirteen-year-old Minerliz Soriano was last seen in class at I.S. 135 last Wednesday, February 24th, but when she didn’t show up at home in Pelham Parkway by 7:30 that evening, her family reported her missing to police. Then, Sunday night, a homeless person going through dumpsters behind a video store just off Bartow Avenue discovered the body of a young girl.

Police… If you’ve ever lived or visited New York City, you’re probably aware that this place can be a huge melting pot full of different cultures, interests, and individuals. But there’s more to the city than just the bright lights and the possibility of chasing a dream. The city’s dark underbelly often rears its ugly head, and sometimes it’s the innocent that pay the price. In 1999, Minerliz Soriano was full of life, love, and had her whole future planned out. But an entire community would be shocked when the loving 13-year-old would turn up dead, and authorities had no idea where to turn. Today on Evil Intentions: the story of Minerliz Soriano.

Minerliz Soriano was born on January 17, 1986, in Puerto Rico. She was born to her parents, Minerva Cepeda and Luis Soriano. She lived with her father in Puerto Rico up until around 1994, when she was about eight years old. It was then that her father would send Minerliz to Brooklyn, New York, to stay with her aunt Amelia Soriano and visit her mother. According to Soriano, at some point, Minerliz’s mother would come to Amelia’s house and take Minerliz with her, cutting all ties to the Soriano family, leaving the father with no connection to his daughter.

Amelia stated that Minerliz loved her mother very much and wanted to go live with her, and she was the child’s mother after all, so understandably, she didn’t put up a fight. When Luis called relatives related to Minerliz’s mother, they would refuse to give him any information on the whereabouts of his daughter. Her father once heard that Minerliz might have been taken to the Dominican Republic, but he couldn’t find her when he went out there and searched. A rocky relationship between the two parents, but Minerliz was well looked after, and by 1999, she, her mother, and her mother’s boyfriend Ray Robles would be residing in the Morris Park section of the Bronx.

Minerliz was young, just reaching adolescence and learning everything she could. Now, even though she was living in a notoriously rough part of New York City, Minerliz never lost her childlike sense of wonder. Friends and family called Minerliz “Minnie” as a nickname. Small in stature but full of life and always energetic, the 13-year-old was well known for being mature for her age and was always seen riding around the neighborhood on her bicycle and roller skating. She was a straight-A student who, although had a spotty attendance record at school, was known for being very bright and very much into her schoolwork. Neighbors recalled seeing her with her sister selling books and candy door-to-door, trying to raise funds for their school around the holidays.

Like many young teenage girls her age, Minnie dreamed of one day meeting Prince Charming. She would spend her time writing poetry and reading teenage romance novels. Minerliz carried around a book she wrote in constantly. She would write about where she saw herself in the future, with a boyfriend who would pick her up in his Ferrari, take her to the movies, then ask her to marry him. Dreams of having a family and a home. Before her birthday in 1999, she would tell her best friend, Kimberly Ortiz, that she wanted a telescope as a gift, since she had just recently began displaying interest in astronomy, even stating that she wanted to be an astronaut. “I used to make fun of her about it. I used to tell her we’re from the Bronx, we’re not going to be astronauts,” said Kimberly Ortiz.

The two would take routine walks to and from school together and first bonded in an after-school reading program, where they became close friends. Sometimes they’d innocently cut after school and instead go to the library. Minnie was an upbeat child with a fun and productive childhood, but residents also noticed that she would hold a lot of responsibility for a child her age. She was often seen biking to and from the M&M 24-hour deli a few blocks away, picking up groceries for her parents. Chores such as the family’s laundry, taking out the garbage, and babysitting her younger sister Nadia were just a few of many. But Minnie never complained, and despite the area not being safe enough for a 13-year-old to roam the streets at night, nobody made any attempts to talk to her parents about it.

“She did a lot of work at home for her parents, a lot of chores. It was a lot of responsibility for a little girl. I felt bad for her because she was always doing so much work,” said neighbor Judy Vicente. The young and studious Minnie was finding her way and roughly sketching out the future she wanted for herself. Even at such a young age, she knew what she wanted and she was determined to live the storybook life she’d always written about. But everything would change on the evening of February 24th, 1999, when Minerliz Soriano would vanish without a trace.

On the morning of February 24th, 1999, the day would start like any other for Minerliz and her family. She ran a few errands, got ready, and made her way to school where she met with a few friends. Business as usual. Now, that afternoon, Kimberly recalls Minerliz wanting to go to the library when they were leaving school at around 2:20 p.m., but Kimberly had to make sure she went to their after-school reading class since her mother had become upset when she found out that they’d been cutting. Kimberly gave Minnie a hug, and she watched her walk in the direction of the bus.

Minnie would sometimes pick up her little sister Nadia at school before making their way back home. But on this day, Minnie never showed up. Nadia had to take what felt like a much longer walk all by herself, but she made it home okay. But when Nadia arrived at home without her big sister, the family of the teen became instantly worried and began a search for her. After visiting numerous locations they felt that she might have been, they decided that the cops needed to get involved. She was reported missing at around 7:00 p.m. that evening.

An officer was sent to Minnie’s home to take a missing person’s report, but authorities seemed to dismiss the possibility that she might have been met with foul play, assuring her parents that she probably just ran off with some friends or just lost track of time. But this wasn’t like Minerliz, and that alone was enough to make her loved ones even more fearful of that outcome. Days would pass and no information of any use would come to officers. Despite interviewing neighbors and all of Minnie’s classmates, investigators were unable to find who might have seen where she went.

“Now we’re standing in front of 1540 Pelham Parkway South. This is where Minnie and her family lived. She would leave this place every morning to go to school, either taking the bus or taking a 20-minute walk to the location.” Met with a brick wall, the public was asked to assist with providing any information that might lead to her whereabouts, even offering an $11,000 reward. But a few days later, a shocking discovery would be made.

On Sunday, February 28, 1999, at around 10:20 a.m., a homeless man was sifting through the dumpsters behind Hollywood Video at 2098 Bartow Avenue in the Co-op City section of the Bronx, an area always known for being dark and desolate. He came across a heavy black bag and began to open it up. He saw a face and a head. Clearly startled by the discovery, he went to the store to alert someone of what he had found. Authorities were immediately called to the scene. “Now this is the location where they would find Minnie’s body. The back of Hollywood Video on Bartow Avenue, now a T-Mobile. Very populated in these parts now, but back then, not a sight to be seen.”

Four days after she had gone missing, after a community would come together to form search parties, and after hopes and prayers for the best outcome, the family’s worst fears would come true. The body of the bubbly 13-year-old Minerliz Soriano had been found. The medical examiner listed Minnie’s cause of death as compression to the neck, possibly from a chokehold or strangulation. Her body bore no signs of struggle or sexual assault, as she was fully clothed, but they found traces of semen on her sweatshirt. She was wrapped up as if someone took time to be careful with her body. It was also stated that she would have been quickly overpowered by her attacker.

The red jacket and black Jansport backpack she had been wearing when she first went missing were nowhere to be found. These articles of clothing could have contained crucial evidence, but they just couldn’t be recovered. “We’ve recanvassed the area a number of times. We’ve checked the bus lines, interviewed the drivers, and put up flyers around the neighborhood trying to find somebody who may have seen this girl getting on or off a bus. She never made it to the apartment, according to her mother and stepfather.”

Officers working on the case were able to place Minerliz leaving the school after parting ways with Kimberly, getting on the Bx12 bus, getting off the bus, and lastly doing what looks like entering her building somehow. Minerliz went from being close to home to being found nearly two miles away four days later. She was wearing a sweatshirt with the logo “New York Jeans” on the front and a pair of denim jeans with that same logo on the pockets. She also wore a pair of white Fila sneakers with blue trim, a black Jansport, and pink fluorescent socks.

Family and friends alike, all torn by the tragic news, not knowing if there was a killer targeting young children, would demand answers. But the trail seemed to only get colder as time went on. Minerliz’s loved ones would keep the memory of the sweet and loving teen alive, and dozens of detectives would take the case on over the years. But when it came to justice, all hope seemed completely lost. Minnie was gone, and her killer… well, he was still out there. With no leads coming in, no tips, and no closure, the family and friends of Minerliz Soriano bore this tragedy for more than 22 years.

But a new procedure in forensics would blow this case wide open. In 2018, the homicide bureau requested familial DNA be introduced to Minnie’s case. For those unfamiliar, a familial DNA search is a search made by law enforcement in DNA databases when a search for an exact match to a DNA sample comes up with nothing. A search of familial DNA might bring back a partial match, indicating a sibling, child, parent, or other blood relative is who they’re looking for. This was the procedure used to track down the infamous Golden State Killer in 2018, more than 30 years after his last known crime spree.

Two years later is when investigators would catch a major break, when tests would confirm that the DNA found on Minerliz was linked to someone in the database. The DNA match in this database belonged to a convicted felon. So this meant that authorities were looking for someone related to that felon, and they were the ones that might have committed this vicious act. To help narrow down their possible suspects, investigators created a family tree made up of five possible male relatives of that felon. Everything from their age, to where they lived at the time of the murder, to their criminal history was taken into account. This meant two of those possible suspects were automatically eliminated since they were too young at the time of the crime. This left three who investigators determined to be sons of that convicted felon.

Now, this is when detectives took a closer look at one of the three men and realized he had lived in the same building as Minerliz all along, just a few floors below. They legally obtained a discarded DNA sample from the man and sent it to the lab to see if this was the same DNA found on Minerliz. It would come up a direct match. Looking back on old case notes, detectives found yet another connection. This same man was questioned in 1999 along with everyone else at 1540 Pelham Parkway. When asked about it back then, he told authorities that he had seen Minerliz around the complex selling candy, picking up mail, and playing in front of their building.

The suspect was revisited and questioned again in November of 2021. He would say he never had any physical contact with Minerliz. But the science didn’t lie; the DNA match was concrete. This was their guy. But what kind of a monster would do this to Minerliz? Joseph Martinez was a 49-year-old man living in New Rochelle, New York. He was a Bronx native and known in the community for bringing his telescope out to the streets and gazing up at the moon. He would come to be known by the moniker “Jupiter Joe,” and astronomy was his game.

He says he was encouraged to learn about astronomy as a kid when his father gifted him his first pair of binoculars. In 2011, he would start “Jupiter Joe’s Sidewalk Astronomy.” Martinez would encourage people of all ages to join him in his quest for knowledge, building a reputation as a good person who wanted to make people smile, and he never failed to attract a crowd. He would carry props with him everywhere he went, getting the attention of children on a daily basis, and Martinez’s candid and upbeat personality made him very easy to talk to. He even had a YouTube channel where he would upload videos of him filming time-lapses of the sky, having interviews with aspiring astronomers, and letting viewers know what type of equipment to purchase if they wanted to do a little stargazing on their end.

He had no prior criminal history. Everybody knew him, and he was always within close proximity. So why would anybody suspect him? The self-proclaimed stargazer spent 22 years interacting with children, mingling with neighbors, and organizing events in the very same community that he had terrorized so long ago. The grizzly details of the crime and Martinez’s arrest would come as a shock to those who knew him. “I’m still thinking there’s gotta be a mistake. He seemed like a fantastic guy,” said Joe Alcott, who met Martinez at a robotics conference.

Investigators say that Martinez asked for a lawyer when questioned about how his semen made it onto Minerliz’s sweater. And when he was arrested, he was silent and had a 1,000-yard stare, as if puzzled and shocked at the outcome. Martinez has two daughters of his own, one of whom still expresses not knowing what to make of the information that’s come to light. A harsh reminder that sometimes you just don’t know people as well as you think you do.

Friends and family of Minerliz Soriano mourn today just as loudly as they did the day her body was discovered. The tragic news and surprising conclusion coming as a reminder to never lose hope when seeking justice. Both investigators and loved ones who worked tirelessly to find this killer are forever scarred. Minnie’s mother, Minerva, and stepfather, Ray, never attended the wake or the funeral for their daughter. Despite Ray Robles mentioning that he raised Minerliz as his own, this only left more questions for a grief-stricken father. To this day, Minerva and Ray have very little to do with Minnie’s investigation.

“There’s something very wrong with her mother not being at the funeral. We just don’t understand. It’s just so horrible, and she didn’t make the wake either,” said Soriano as he watched his daughter being brought into a hearse. “The last time I saw her was five years ago. Her mother has been hiding my child. I went looking for her, but nobody from the family would tell me where she was.” Soriano was also highly upset at claims that Minerliz was often seen running excessive errands late at night and caring for her half-sister Nadia. “She was a housekeeper for them. She was taking care of the other child. I feel happy because justice is working, but I feel sad at the same time because it takes too long.” Luis Soriano now resides in Texas.

Joseph Martinez was arraigned on Tuesday, December 30, 2021, on two charges of second-degree murder in the death of Minerliz Soriano. He’s next due in court on March 7th, 2022. “I replay that moment over and over. I blamed myself for years because I said to myself, maybe if I asked I would have known what she was doing. I was the last person who probably saw her alive other than her killer. I didn’t forget her all these years and I don’t want anyone else to forget her. The day of her funeral, I held her hand and I wouldn’t let go of her casket. I made a promise to her I would find her killer, and I would never forget. Minerliz would have been 36 years old.”

Just wanted to say thank you for stopping by and watching today’s video. I really do appreciate all the love that you guys have been showing me in just over a week that I’ve been doing this channel. The response has been nothing short of amazing, so I really mean it, thank you. And a huge thanks to the Wang gang, you guys came out in droves to show me support and that just makes me want to do this even more. Me and Wang have been friends for a really long time in the local music scene and seeing him on this platform and all his success and seeing how he stuck to it, it’s definitely an inspiration and one of the reasons why I’m sitting here right now. So thank you, Wang, and thank all of you guys.

I’d also like to thank Kimberly Ortiz, who’s the best friend of Minerliz Soriano. I was able to reach out to her and me and her spoke for quite a bit. She shared stories about Minerliz and was able to give me a different perspective of who she was, and at the end of the day, that’s what I want these pieces to be. I want them to be about the people who are affected. Now I pass a question off to you guys: if your kid passed away, would you be able to leave without going to their funeral? Do you think it’s wrong of the family to just disconnect themselves from Minerliz and this investigation? Please feel free to sound off in the comments below, but let’s always keep in mind these are real cases tied to real people and they are still mourning. Now, friends, always remember: keep a tight circle, mind your surroundings, and look out for those who might not be able to look out for themselves, because you never know who around them might have evil intentions. I’m out.