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Joshua Orta: Key witness to Ruben Martinez's ICE killing made damning claims before death, ‘He did not strike anyone…’
Joshua Orta, 25, the only passenger who was in the car with Ruben Ray Martinez when an ICE officer shot him dead in South Texas last year, has died.
The only passenger who was in the car with Ruben Ray Martinez when an ICE officer shot him dead in South Texas last year has died in a separate car accident, attorneys told Newsweek. 25-year-old Joshua Orta had made some damning claims about Martinez's shooting, contradicting official accounts.
Orta, a close friend and the only known eyewitness to Martinez’s death, was reportedly planning to formally sign a statement and assist with further inquiries into the incident. However, over the weekend, he was killed in an unrelated highway collision near San Antonio, according to Martinez’s family attorney.
Martinez, 23, was fatally shot on March 15, 2025, in South Padre Island, Texas, during an encounter with federal agents. Authorities later confirmed that the shooting involved a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations unit. The involvement had not been publicly disclosed at the time.
What Joshua Orta had said
Orta previously described the events leading up to the shooting in a sworn statement given to lawyers representing Martinez’s family, saying they were "spontaneous" and "lighthearted” while recounting a trip to visit friends on South Padre Island just days after Martinez’s birthday.
Orta said that their car was approached by local and state officers while they were driving cautiously through traffic. He contradicted official claims, saying Martinez never struck anyone, accelerated dangerously, or posed any threat.
"The trooper seemed to be trying to get in front of the car, like he wasn’t moving out of the way when we tried to turn around and leave like the police officer told us to do," Orta said in a witness statement obtained by Newsweek and earlier reported by The New York Times.
He alleged that a federal agent fired several shots at Martinez from just a few feet away without having issued any warnings or giving him a chance to comply. He also accused officers of delaying medical aid for at least 10 minutes after Martinez was shot, and handcuffing Martinez while he was unconscious.
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"Following the shooting, law enforcement pulled Ruben from the car while he was clearly unconscious or already dead," Orta wrote. "Despite this, they put him face down on the pavement and handcuffed him. At least 10 minutes passed before any tried CPR or other treatment on Ruben."
"Ruben was driving cautiously in traffic in his proper lane and certainly did not strike anyone with his vehicle," he added.
Orta also alleged that Martinez's family had been denied access to records of his death. He claimed that authorities had alleged Martinez had illegally entered an ambulance lane, struck an officer and was in possession of drugs and alcohol. Orta claimed that none of these allegations were true.
Orta further claimed that the federal agent who shot Martinez and other law enforcement officers at the scene did not have bodycams activated at the time of the incident.
"Ruben was unarmed, non-violent, not fleeing, and not resisting at the time he was shot. His killing was unjustified and excessive," Orta wrote in September.
What did the DHS say?
The DHS said in a statement to Newsweek on Friday about Martinez’s death that HSI agents were assisting the South Padre Island Police Department following a major accident.
"A driver of a blue Ford intentionally ran over a Homeland Security Investigation special agent resulting in him being on the hood of the vehicle. Upon witnessing this, another agent fired defensive shots to protect himself, his fellow agents, and the general public," a spokesperson for the agency said.
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"The driver was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced deceased. The agent who was ran over sustained a knee injury and was taken to the hospital,” the spokesperson added.
At the time, a DHS report on the incident identified the deceased as a U.S. citizen from San Antonio. The report further said that a second person in the vehicle, also a U.S. citizen, was taken into custody by South Padre Island police pending charges – which was Orta.
"First and foremost, Joshua’s death is an awful tragedy for his family and friends, and the Reyes family is grieving with them," Alex Stamm, a lawyer for the family said in a statement. "In terms of Ruben’s death, the world has also now lost a critical eyewitness."
Officials are now calling for further investigation into Martinez’s death. Texas Democratic Representative Joaquin Castro said on social media that he wanted to know why there had been "an 8-month cover up."
