Edward Hernandez and Two Accomplices Sentenced for Torturing Informant

EDWARD HERNANDEZ, WALKIN FRANCISCO ARIAS VILLAR, and JOSIEL GUSTAVO MARTINEZ GUZMAN have been sentenced to a decade in federal prison each for their roles in the chilling case of torturing a government informant. Today, Hernandez was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Paul A. Crotty after pleading guilty on April 6, 2021. Arias Villar and Martinez Guzman were sentenced on September 16 and September 22, 2021, respectively.

According to court documents, the trio abducted the informant in the Bronx following a meeting aimed at laundering $178,000 in drug proceeds. Unaware that their victim was an informant, they subjected him to a brutal assault. Martinez Guzman burned the victim with cigarettes and threatened his life, while Arias Villar demanded ransom payments. The attack ended when Arias Villar fractured the victim’s nose during a violent confrontation.

The DEA recovered the kidnappers’ car in Fairfield, Connecticut, three hours after the abduction. The victims were then taken to a hospital for treatment. Hernandez, 42, Arias Villar, 31, and Martinez Guzman, 29, were each convicted of conspiracy to commit extortion. In addition to their sentences, they face three years of supervised release.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams emphasized the case’s connection to illegal drug trade, stating, ‘This case illustrates yet again how violence goes hand in hand with the illegal drug trade.’ The DEA was praised for its swift recovery of the victim. Assistant United States Attorneys Aline Flodr, Stephanie Lake, and Sheb Swett are handling the prosecution.

Charges against Dacheng Zhen remain pending. The case is a stark reminder of the brutal nature of organized crime in New York City.

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