LAS VEGAS -- Bryan Clay is scheduled to be in court Tuesday, charged with the murders and sexual assaults of a mother and daughter and the attempted murder of a third member of the Martinez family. Homicide detectives say the attack appears to have been completely random and unprovoked.
For two straight weeks, Las Vegas police focused enormous resources on this case because, in the words of veteran homicide detectives, it was as gruesome as it gets and this guy needed to be stopped. Nothing is tougher for murder investigators than a crime where there is no real connection between the killer and the victims. But the suspect in this case made some mistakes and detectives pounced on them.
Family of Murdered Mother and Daughter Speak Out
Homicide Lt. Ray Steiber is certain his detectives nailed the right man in the bloody crime spree that had the community on edge for two weeks. Contrary to news reports published Friday, Clay was not arrested in connection with the murders of a mother and daughter. Police used a prior domestic violence warrant to hold him until DNA tests could link him to the slayings.
"We could not positively say he was the murder suspect. We had to rely on DNA evidence and profiles to put the pieces together. We had run that DNA through 11 million other profiles -- not one match. For anyone to say we arrested him on those murders, it was incorrect," he said.
Despite 11 days of painstaking work at the crime scene, police had little to link the murders to Clay. His criminal record consisted of minor offenses, nothing that got his DNA into the system. While being taken to the jail on domestic violence charges, Clay put on a weird show -- photos show him making goofy faces, flashes gang signs, and warning the police that he would sue. Steiber says Clay admitted if he had known he was a suspect in the murders, he would have bolted.
SLIDESHOW: Bryan Clay Getting Arrested
Steiber says leaks of unconfirmed information caused Metro homicide to change tactics and its timetable more than once, and could have tipped off the suspect and caused him to flee. Detectives are shaking their heads in disgust over media behavior during the past two weeks.
Police say leaks to media outlets were extremely counterproductive during the probe, and that reports Friday that Clay was arrested for murder were dead wrong. Other news reports went public about the rape of Karla Martinez even before her family had been informed by police.
"Is it that important for a story to get out that a 10-year-old girl had been sexually assaulted? Was it bad enough that she was in her bed at home when she was killed -- inside her house -- and we had to put that out before the family even knowing? I think not," said Lt. Steiber.
Why did the killer choose this house and these victims? It was completely random, Metro believes. There was no previous connection between Clay and the victims and there were no signs of forced entry. The killer somehow slipped into the house and went to work with a claw hammer.
"We believe he attacked dad first, then mom, then the little girl," said Steiber.
As some detectives worked the crime scene, others looked for similar offenses in the general area to see if any patterns emerged. Clay was one of five or six persons of interest late last week. As the arrest report indicates, the big break came from an unprovoked assault on a 50-year-old woman around the same time as the murders.
A hat containing DNA evidence was left at the scene, and the victim's cell phone was taken. Calls made from that phone led right to clay. Steiber says the entire homicide team went all-in to catch this guy.
"I had detectives working this around the clock. I could not get them to go home," he said. "We still have work to do. Do we have the right person in jail? You bet. Now its our job to make sure he never gets out."
Bryan Clay
Yadira Martinez
Karla Martinez
