2025 San Marcos murder: Man sentenced to life in prison

SAN MARCOS, Texas - A man has been sentenced to life in prison for a 2025 murder in San Marcos.

49-year-old Juan Manuel Yanza was sentenced on May 14, 2026 for the murder of 43-year-old Victoria Valadez in her apartment.

Officials say the sentence was the maximum punishment under the law. 

Yanez had previously entered a guilty plea to the crime at a May 6, 2026 hearing and had agreed to let the court determine his punishment.

Officials say Yanez will not be eligible for parole until he has served at least 30 years in prison.

What they're saying:

"This sentence recognizes the truth of what happened in that apartment: a life was taken, a family was destroyed, and a community was disrupted. Justice required a sentence equal to the gravity of that crime," Assistant Criminal District Attorney Jon English said in a news release.

"Judge Pool’s sentence delivered that justice for the community and the victim’s loved ones, and the exceptional work of the San Marcos Police Department made this outcome possible," English added.

Assistant Criminal District Attorney Abigail Whitaker, who prosecuted the case with English, said, "The family showed extraordinary courage throughout this case and through the sentencing hearing."

"Their strength ensured the court saw not only the facts of the murder, but also the true cost to the victim’s family and the community as a whole," Whitaker said.

The backstory:

On Feb. 7, 2025, officials say Yanez called 9-1-1 and told the operator he had just shot his wife. Yanez and Valadez were not legally married, but they had been romantically involved for several months leading up to the shooting. 

San Marcos Police Department officers traced the call to an apartment unit on River Road, where they found a woman with a fatal gunshot wound to the head. 

Investigators found no sign of a struggle, and the evidence supported the conclusion that she may have been asleep when she was killed.

Surveillance video from a 7-Eleven near the crime scene, taken about 20 minutes before the 911 call, showed Yanez arriving in the victim’s truck, buying four beers and driving toward the River Road apartment. The beers were found at the crime scene: two were opened, and all four were still cold to the touch. 

Yanez’s wallet was also found on the victim’s nightstand. After the 9-1-1 call, Yanez disposed of the murder weapon, which was never recovered, and fled to Houston, where he maintained a residence and a separate family. 

Harris County authorities apprehended Yanez in the vicinity of his Houston residence after a brief manhunt. 

Forensic testing confirmed the victim’s blood was on clothing and jewelry collected from Yanez. Testing also found gunshot residue. 

When officers recovered Yanez’s cellphone, they discovered its SIM card had been physically removed before the phone was collected by police, which investigators said indicated an attempt to
inhibit efforts to track Yanez as he fled. 

Officials say that despite extensive forensic examination of digital evidence in the case, investigators were never able to determine a motive for the murder.