Police are investigating the disappearance of a 35-year-old man from National City.
Julio Martinez Jr. left his wallet, phone, and his car behind when he walked out of his house on Monday, leaving his family no way of tracing him.
“He’s not carrying any form of ID, or money, he just left walking,” Martinez's mother Maria Beltren said.
The father of four is a barber at King of Fades Barbershop on Highland Avenue in National City. Beltren said he was feeling depressed before his disappearance. She claims he has survivors' guilt from a shooting at the barbershop back in March that left his younger brother, David, in critical condition.
When the shooting occurred, Martinez had stepped out of the barbershop and went home to change.
“[Martinez] took the shooting really hard; I saw that it was hard for him emotionally and he was struggling to be strong for his younger brother, and I think he just snapped and couldn’t take it anymore,” Beltren said.
She says Martinez recently told a family member that he wanted to take his own life.
Local
The shooter was arrested but David’s injuries are serious and it will be months before he can work again.
Beltren has called local hospitals and the morgue hoping her son would show up. She’s asked friends in Tijuana for help contacting local hospitals as well.
Martinez does have a criminal record but his family says he's since turned his life around. They just hope they find him before it's too late.
“I’m really worried about Julio, as a mother you can only take so much. There is a breaking point,” Beltren said.
The investigation is on going anyone with information can call the National City Police Department at (619) 336-4411.
If you or anyone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts, you can call the local 24/7 crisis hotline at (888) 724 7240.
