Jose Franco-Martinez of Elmont convicted in fatal stabbing of ex-girlfriend at Belmont Park, Nassau DA says

A Nassau County jury convicted an Elmont man of second-degree murder Tuesday in the 2018 fatal stabbing of his ex-girlfriend at Belmont Park, District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly said. 

Jose Franco-Martinez, 58, traveled more than 1,000 miles across the country to confront Maria Larin on June 17, 2018, because he suspected she was seeing another man, Donnelly said. Franco-Martinez, who faces a sentence of 25 years to life in prison, is scheduled to appear before Judge Helene Gugerty for sentencing on May 19. 

“Without warning, on Father’s Day morning in 2018, he showed up to the Belmont racetrack where she worked, waited for her to appear, and without uttering a single word, viciously attacked her with a knife. He stabbed and cut her 23 times as her co-workers ran over to try and save her life,” Donnelly said. “Thankfully staff at Belmont responded quickly and apprehended this defendant before he could flee. Our prayers are with the Larin family as they mourn this completely senseless loss.”

Joseph Lo Piccolo of Garden City, Franco-Martinez's attorney, called Larin's death "a complete tragedy and said his "client was struggling with severe depression. 

"The jury did not accept that and we accept their verdict. We will appeal," Lo Piccolo said. 

Larin, 51, was working as a hot walker, helping horses to cool down after racing, inside the stall area of Barn 61 at Belmont when Franco-Martinez arrived. He approached Larin with a silver kitchen knife and stabbed her multiple times, Donnelly said. Larin’s co-worker, who witnessed the attack, picked up a shovel and hit Franco-Martinez in the head, but he managed to run away. 

After a brief chase, security staff from the New York Racing Association apprehended Franco-Martinez and called the police. During the chase, Franco-Martinez threw the knife into some bushes, officials said.

Donnelly said the defendant, who had previously worked as a hot walker at Belmont, became angry with Larin after she ended their romantic relationship. He paid an acquaintance to drive him from Kansas, where he was working, to New York to kill the victim.