Where is Shaun Murphy now? Whereabouts explored ahead of Evil Lives Here: Shadows of Death on ID

Shaun Murphy of Farmington, New Mexico, pleaded guilty to the horrific killing of two-spirited 16-year-old Fred Martinez Jr. in Cortez, Colorado. Murphy was never charged with a hate crime due to a lack of laws that protected gender identity/expression in Colorado at the time. Instead, he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in 2002 and was given a 40-year sentence.

Fred Martinez Jr.'s remains were found five days after he went missing from the Ute Mountain Roundup Rodeo in June 2001. He was bludgeoned beyond recognition and died of blunt force injuries and exposure. A tipster told authorities of Murphy's involvement in the crime, claiming that the 18-year-old bragged about having "bug squashed" and "beat up" a f*g.

Shaun Murphy bragged to his friends about murdering Fred Martinez Jr. in June 2001 (Image via @WalterKlingler/Twitter)

According to a September 2019 report by The Journal, Shaun Murphy was released in May 2018 after serving only 17 years. He was residing in Greeley, Colorado, at the time.

ID's Evil Lives Here: Shadows of Death looks into Fred Martinez Jr.'s hate crime murder in an episode titled Killing of Two Spirits. The synopsis of the episode says:

"In 2001, in Cortez, Colo., the violent murder of a gay Navajo teenager means two spirits die with him."

The all-new episode airs on ID this Tuesday, May 9, at 9 pm ET.

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Shaun Murphy claimed he murdered Fred Martinez Jr. after learning of his s*xual and gender identity

Shaun Murphy, an 18-year-old Farmington man who admitted to bludgeoning Fred Martinez Jr. to death in June 2001 in a hate crime against the LGBTQ community, was released at the age of 36 from prison in May 2018 on parole after serving only 17 years of the 40-year sentence. Murphy claimed he murdered Martinez Jr. after learning of his s*xual and gender identity.

In 2002, a court in Colorado sentenced Murphy, who was 18 at the time, to 40 years in a state prison for killing Martinez Jr., then 16 years old, with a rock. On June 21, 2001, five days after going missing, the victim's decomposed and bludgeoned beyond-recognition remains were discovered in a canyon south of Cortez in an area called "The Pits."

Martinez Jr. reportedly died of blunt force trauma and exposure. He had a cut on his abdomen, wounds on his wrists, and multiple skull fractures. Murphy was arrested in connection with the murder after a tipster told police that he bragged to friends that he "bug-smashed a h*to [slang for a f*g]." He was initially charged with second-degree murder, and a first-degree murder charge was later added.

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Shaun Murphy's release from prison and move to Greeley, Colorado, might fuel terror in the community

Shaun Murphy pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Montezuma County in 2001 after he was charged with first-degree murder and faced potential life in prison without a possibility of parole. He was handed a 40-year prison sentence. In September 2019, Murphy, aged 36, walked out of prison on parole.

According to a 2019 The Journal report, the interim Colorado Department of Corrections spokesperson Mark Fairbairn stated that Murphy currently resides in Greeley, where he is prohibited from consuming alcohol or other intoxicating substances.

The Durango Herald reported that LGBTQIA+ activist Cathy Renna, who was acquainted with Fred Martinez Jr., believes that Shaun Murphy's release from prison might fuel terror in the community because the crime he admitted to decades ago remains "one of the most horrific hate crime murders I'd ever seen."

Renna further said,

"For the local community, I can imagine it’s pretty traumatic to know that someone who is a brutal killer from years ago is back out on the streets. F.C. [Martinez Jr.] is still one of the youngest hate crime victims on record in the LGBTQ community, and that’s disturbing."

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Learn more about the case on ID's Evil Lives Here: Shadows of Death this Tuesday.