Where is Zachary Bunney Now? We discuss the murder of Scott Martinez following the release of the 2023 Hulu true crime series Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks. This article contains disturbing details.
A missing person case turns into a murder investigation in this episode from the Hulu true crime series.
Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks takes cases that were left unsolved for years, then presents how modern advances in the field lead to the stories being solved.
Some of these crimes were committed literally decades ago, and the show manages to catch up with the families of the victims and hear their feelings on the resolutions provided.
It is, of course, a somber and poignant moment when closure is provided, and we can only pray that we are never in that position.
Perhaps one of the allures of true crime is the awareness that it has happened to someone else, and we, at least, are safe.
Whatever the reason for the success of these types of shows, you can rest assured that there will be more to follow.
The case we present to you for this article involves a twisted murderer and a violent crime that left a community scarred and shocked.
So if you are interested in the case, here’s an accompanying article that answers the question: Where is Zachary Bunney, the killer of Scott Martinez, now?
Who is Zachary Bunney, and what did he do?
In a horrific murder on June 26th, 2006, the victim was stabbed over thirty times, which confounded police when it was discovered. Scott Martinez, a well-loved and respected man from La Mesa, California, did not respond to phone calls and texts from his fiancée.
When she asked police to engage in a welfare check, they found his home locked up and received no answer.
Forcing the door, they would find Scott dead and the house covered in blood.
Zachary Bunney was the murderer, but he escaped justice for the killing for thirteen years.
It seems that Bunney thought that Scott was having an affair with his girlfriend, and the attack had come about through a jealous rage.
At Bunney’s preliminary hearing, the woman involved would state that she babysat for Martinez’s daughter but had no other relationship with him.
A sword that was used in the murder was found in Scott’s apartment, and two different blood types were found at the scene, Scott’s and the murderer’s, who seemed to have cut himself in the incident and used toilet paper to clean the blood.
How was Scott Martinez killed?
Scott was stabbed over thirty times with the three-and-a-half-foot-long sword found at the crime scene.
Where is Zachary Bunney Now?
After over a decade, with no leads, new advancements in DNA genealogy were used to re-examine the case. He was eventually tracked down, arrested, and made a guilty plea to the crime, reducing the charge to involuntary manslaughter and being sentenced to twelve years.
He is currently still in prison at the California Institution for Men in California but has a chance of parole in 2027.
How did DNA evidence convict Zachary Bunney?
The blood sample on the toilet paper was Bunney’s, but there was no match on file that police could trace. However, when the case was re-opened, the investigators would search for matching DNA and come up trumps with a match on a public genealogy database used for tracing family trees.
A relative of Bunney had entered DNA on the database, innocently researching their family tree.
When that DNA was perfectly matched with Bunney’s, the case was pretty much closed.
