(Stillwater, Okla.) — A Stillwater man for whom the death penalty is being sought waived his right Monday to a speedy trial on a first-degree murder charge in the near-decapitation of a 19-year-old man whose twin brother he allegedly also wanted to kill along with two of his own brothers, according to court documents.
Isaiah Zoar Marin, 21, appeared Monday before Special District Judge Katherine Thomas from the Payne County Jail where he remains held without bail in connection with the Oct. 29, 2014, slaying of Jacob Crockett at the victim’s apartment on the west side of Stillwater, court records show.
The preliminary hearing for Marin, who is being represented by Oklahoma Indigent Defense System attorneys Peter Astor and Wayne Woodyard, was scheduled Monday for April 27 in Payne County District Court.
In court documents seeking the death penalty, District Attorney Laura Austin Thomas alleged “that the defendant expressed his desire to kill Jesse Crockett, the brother of Jacob. Further that the defendant expressed his desire to kill two of his brothers on the same day of the murder of Jacob Crockett.
“Further that the defendant expressed that he had wanted to kill the above people for a while,” the district attorney alleged.
“That the defendant pulled out a machete and began swinging it around to the point that the victim, Jacob Crockett, and Samuel Marin, brother of the defendant, cautioned him to stop, that the machete was extremely sharp and that he could hurt them,” the district attorney alleged.
“Further that the defendant left the apartment of Jacob Crockett only to return and further harm Jacob Crockett. Further that the defendant left the apartment of Jacob Crockett with the machete with the intent to go to his home and kill his other brothers,” the district attorney alleged.
In the court documents, the district attorney alleged that the defendant “has utter disregard for human suffering, which establishes the defendant will be likely to commit further acts of violence and would be a continuing threat to society.”
The district attorney alleged “that the defendant, by use of wanton violence, did forcibly repeatedly stab Jacob Crockett and then did nearly behead him.
“Further, that Jacob was in conscious pain and suffering, as he pleaded with the defendant to stop and as he tried futilely to push the machete used by the defendant away from himself,” the district attorney alleged.
Samuel Marin, who lived with Jacob and Jesse Crockett, told police “in the past Jacob and Isaiah had disagreements because Jacob and Jesse were practicing witchcraft and Isaiah had strong Christian beliefs,” Stillwater Police Detective Sgt. Jeff Watts alleged in an affidavit.
Samuel Marin said that he and his brother “were playing a card game and Jacob (the victim) was in the room with them. Samuel stated Isaiah (the defendant) had been watching YouTube videos related to his Christian beliefs and Book of Matthew.
“Samuel stated while he and Isaiah were playing a card game, Isaiah picked up a large black sword and removed it from a sheath.
“Samuel stated Isaiah stood up and began swinging the sword around. Samuel told Isaiah to be careful or he was going to cut someone.
“Samuel stated Isaiah told him, ‘I would never cut you bro.’ Samuel said he was holding some of the game cards in one hand and texting with his other hand.
“Samuel stated he heard a noise described as the sound of someone getting stabbed. He stated he looked up and saw Jacob stand up and blood gushing from his chest.
“Samuel stated Isaiah was still holding the sword,” the affidavit alleged.
“Samuel stated he immediately fled the apartment. He said Isaiah was following him and trying to calm him down.
“Samuel said Isaiah stated he would explain why he killed Jacob from letters he would write while he was in prison,” the affidavit alleged.
“Samuel stated Isaiah told him, he (Isaiah) was going to call the police. Samuel followed Isaiah back to the apartment so he could gather some things and leave.
“Samuel stated once he arrived back at the apartment, he noticed additional stab and cut wounds to Jacob. Samuel said he gathered some clothing and his phone and departed the scene,” the affidavit alleged.
At 2:46 p.m. that day, a Stillwater police dispatcher received a 911 call from a cell phone in which the caller said he was at the car lot near El Vaquero, the affidavit alleged.
“The caller then advised, ‘I murdered someone.’ The caller began rambling about sacrificing and magic,” the affidavit alleged.
Asked his name by the dispatcher, the caller identified himself as Isaiah Marin, the affidavit alleged.
Questioned about how he murdered someone, “Isaiah stated, ‘I hacked them to death with a machete,’” the affidavit alleged.
About three minutes into the initial 911 call, a dispatcher received an additional 911 call from a Janzen’s Toyota employee who said a man was walking from the front of the business toward Highway 51, which is Sixth Avenue, the affidavit said.
The caller said the man “was covered in blood and carrying a machete,” while walking west on Highway 51, the affidavit alleged.
When Stillwater Police Officer Paul Blankinship arrived, “Isaiah began running westbound with a knife in his hand,” that he dropped and laid on the ground, the affidavit alleged.
“Officer Hiner assisted Officer Blankinship with detaining Isaiah at gunpoint,” while he was handcuffed by Detective Royce Stephens, the affidavit alleged.
When police arrived at the apartment complex at the corner of 5th Avenue and Oakdale Street and located the apartment, “Detective Elliott observed what he believed to be blood smears on the door nob of the residence,” the affidavit said.
“Detectives Elliott, Stephens and Officer Stanbery entered the unlocked apartment,” and saw blood on the stairwell, the affidavit said.
“As the officers began the ascent up the stairs, they observed the blood-covered body of a male lying on the kitchen floor at the top of the stairs,” with multiple deep slash and stab wounds, the affidavit said.
The victim’s head was mostly severed from his body, the affidavit said.
While the detective sergeant was at the scene, Jesse Crockett arrived at the apartment where he said he lives with his brother, Jacob Crockett, and his friend, Samuel Marin, the affidavit said.
“Jesse stated he received a call from Samuel at 2:50 p.m.,” in which “Samuel told him that Samuel’s brother, Isaiah, had stabbed Jacob,” the affidavit alleged.
“Jesse stated he believed Samuel was fabricating the story. Jesse stated he was at an orthodontist’s appointment in Edmond when he got the call, the affidavit said.
“Jesse stated he observed the police units as he was returning to his apartment,” the affidavit said.
The defendant was arrested at 3:04 p.m. on the day of the slaying, at 5200 W. 6th Avenue in Stillwater, the affidavit said.
The victim’s brother told police that the defendant was a “religious zealot” of the Christian faith and a “heavy drug user,” according to an affidavit.
According to the victim’s obituary, “Jacob was a born-again Christian and member of Life Church.TV in Stillwater.”
The victim was a Stillwater High School graduate attending Northern Oklahoma College in Stillwater and worked as a customer service representative at Carmike Cinema of Stillwater.
The victim’s father is an Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper, but that relationship was not shown in any way to be a motive, according to a Stillwater police news release.
***
