Pueblo security guard arrested with severed hand in pocket pleaded not guilty

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) -The Pueblo Police Department (PPD) arrested a security guard working at the Sangre De Cristo Arts Center for 1st Degree Murder on Jan. 10, 2024.

PPD says that 26-year-old, Solomon Martinez was arrested at the Sangre De Cristo Arts Center while he was working as a security guard. Martinez was employed by the former Pueblo County Sheriff, Dan Corsentino's, security guard company. Corsentino told KRDO13 Investigates that Martinez had zero criminal history and passed all background checks before being hired in late December. Corsentino says he had only worked a little over 52 hours for the company before being arrested.

RELATED: Pueblo security guard arrested with severed hand in pocket, charged with murder

When officers arrested him, court documents say that Martinez had a human hand in a plastic bag in his pocket.

Martinez appeared in court today, Sept. 3, 2024, where he pleaded not guilty. A jury trial is scheduled for Jan. 2025.