Teenager Sentenced In Beating Outside OP Nightclub

A teenager convicted in the beating of a man outside the Old Plantation club in May was sentenced to 10 years in juvenile detention, with the possibility of being moved to an adult jail once he turns 19.

Esteban Alfaro, 17, on Thursday was found guilty of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon — a baseball bat — in the severe beating of Lionel Martinez outside the popular gay nightclub.

Alfaro and four other teens allegedly beat 23-year-old Martinez after a verbal confrontation began at about 12:20 a.m. May 7, police said. The confrontation became physical, with the men punching, kicking and eventually using a bat to hit Martinez, police said.

This case caught the attention of a lot of El Pasoans, as some believed it was a hate crime, because some witnesses claimed the suspects were yelling gay slurs during the beating.

Police classified the assault as being gang-related. It “was not committed based on bias of race, color, disability, religion, national origin or ancestry, age, gender or sexual preference,” police officials said several weeks after the incident. Martinez Jr. maintained he was neither gay nor part of a gang.

Martinez’s father, Lionel Martinez Sr., who was at the sentencing, said he was glad Alfaro was found guilty.

“They did a lot of damage to my son,” Lionel Martinez Sr. said. “(We) have go through a lot of … sadness, and to see him like that, it’s kind of hard.”

Lionel Martinez Sr. said his son lost a couple of toes and has trouble speaking. He said his son doesn’t remember a lot of things, especially the day he was assaulted.

“We’re a big family. He’s a little brother. I don’t know how to react to this,” said Alfaro’s older sister, Maria Alfaro. “(The prosecution is) making him seem like a delinquent when he’s not.”

While the Martinezes and Alfaros are at odds over Friday’s sentencing, both families share in their hurting.

“We know that he participated and we feel really badly for the Martinez family, but we know what he did wasn’t enough to get him in prison,” said Maria Alfaro.

“We’re even sad that this boy’s mother, that she has to go through this because of him,” said Lionel Martinez Sr..