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CLINTON — Noncustodial parents accused of taking two girls from their caretaker and running away with them to New Mexico have now been charged with kidnapping.
Christopher John Montoya, 35, and Monica Jody Martinez, 27, are charged in 2nd District Court with two counts of child kidnapping, a first-degree felony.
Initial court appearances have not been scheduled for the couple, who remain jailed in Gallup, New Mexico, awaiting extradition.
According to police, Montoya and Martinez took their two children, 3-year-old Marae Montoya and 11-month-old Cynthia Montoya, from the home where they were being cared for on the afternoon of May 5.
The couple no longer has custody of the girls and has a no-contact court order in place due to a history of domestic violence in the children's presence, according to a warrant for their arrest.
The alleged kidnapping triggered an Amber Alert, which was seen by an alert Motel 6 clerk in Gallup who recognized the couple when they requested a room about 4 a.m. the next day. The attendant checked Montoya into a room, verified that his vehicle matched the one in the Amber Alert, and notified police.
The couple was arrested without incident, and the children were recovered by officers who came prepared with diapers, formula and other items. Police at the time said it was unknown why Martinez and Montoya went to New Mexico or what their final destination was.
Related:
New Mexico clerk helps police find children in Utah Amber Alert
Two young girls who police say were kidnapped by their noncustodial parents in Clinton were rescued early Friday more than 500 miles away, thanks to an alert Motel 6 clerk in Gallup, New Mexico.According to the arrest warrant, the couple went to a Division of Child and Family Services office in Clearfield prior to seeking out his daughters in Clinton. Montoya was "very combative, threatening and agitated" and appeared to be under the influence of controlled substances, the warrant states.
Following a confrontation, Montoya left the office suddenly, went to Clinton and took the children, police say.
Montoya was believed to be off of psychotropic medicine he takes for mental illness, the warrant states.
Montoya's Utah criminal history dates back to at least 1999 when he was convicted of attempted aggravated assault, according to court records. Other convictions include failing to stop at the command of police in 2009 and again in 2011, disorderly conduct in 2015, and damaging a police car in 2015 after being arrested in a road rage incident.
