Second Mexican National Sentenced In July 2021 Paterson Fatal Stabbing

Friday, August 29, 2025, 2:15 P.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,

PATERSON, NJ.- A 33-year-old Mexican national residing in Bergen County, New Jersey, will be spending the next fifteen years in New Jersey State Prison after being sentenced on Wednesday, in accordance with the terms of his plea agreement, for his role in the brutal stabbing death of a man outside his parents’ house that occurred during a party on July 5, 2021, in the City of Paterson, New Jersey.

      According to Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes, on Wednesday, August 27, 2025, Francisco Martinez, 33, of Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey, appeared in Passaic County Superior Court and was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Sohail Mohammed to 15 years in State Prison, subject to the No Early Release Act, which will require Martinez to serve 85% of his custodial term before becoming eligible for parole. 

     Martinez previously appeared in Passaic County Superior Court on May 20, 2025, and pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree Aggravated Manslaughter.

During His Plea Allocution, In May Martinez Admits Guilt

     During his May plea allocution, Martinez admitted that on July 5, 2021, during an altercation that took place outside his parents’ home located at 455 Totowa Avenue in Paterson, New Jersey, he pulled out a knife and, with extreme indifference to human life, stabbed Johnny Jimenez, causing his death.

Martinez’s Brother, Jose, Was Convicted At Trial

     Martinez’s co-defendant and brother, Jose Martinez, following a nearly month-long trial in Passaic County Superior Court, was found guilty by a jury of first-degree Murder; Conspiracy to Commit Murder; Aggravated Assault; and related weapons offenses. Jose Martinez was subsequently sentenced to two concurrent terms of 30 years in New Jersey State Prison.