Update: Sheriff’s department says released homicide suspect had duplicate case numbers

Update 11.18: It turns out the Monterey County Sheriff’s department says that it was a paperwork issue that allowed Martinez to be released.

The Sheriff’s Department said that when the homicide case was dismissed and then re-filed, two different case numbers were created. The original number and the new one.

Sheriff’s Department said that for whatever reason the court staff didn’t put the two cases together in one file when they sent the paperwork to the jail.

The jail received paper work for both cases but they were in separate files.

The Sheriff’s Department is working with the DA’s office and the courts so this doesn’t happen again. They’ll be looking at organizational procedures, notification steps in place, as well as taking steps to make sure that they “marry up the reports” in the future.

As for Martinez, he’s potentially facing an escape charge, that is still under review, the DA’s office is not charging him with that now.

Martinez will be back in court next work for a preliminary examination of the homicide charges.

UPDATE 11.14: The Monterey County Sheriff’s Department has confirmed to News Channel 5 that Antonio Martinez is back in custody Monday.

Investigators say Martinez walked into the main off of the Sheriff’s Department at 3:00pm Monday afternoon and turned himself in.

Martinez was taken back to jail and not interviewed.

The Sheriff’s Department said they will place Martinez in the same higher security housing unit he was in before because of the homicide charge. There will be no extra security.

Investigators are still trying to figure out the paperwork error than led to his mistaken release.

11/14/14: A statewide manhunt is underway for a man charged in a homicide case. On Friday law enforcement began are looking for an inmate, who was accidentally released from custody on Thursday night. Now the search for 36-year-old Antonio Miranda Martinez continues. On Friday, NewsChannel 5 spoke with neighbors and family members.

They said they’re still mourning the loss of 47-year-old Juan Pedraza, shot and killed on Towt Street in March, 2014. They’re also upset to hear the man accused of his murder, was accidentally released by the Monterey County Jail.

“Antonio was my neighbor and so was the guy who was murdered. To me they seemed like two good guys, I never saw that they got into any type of problems. They didn’t give us neighbors any problems at all,” said a neighbor who asked to remain anonymous.

Neighbors said they never suspected any trouble between Martinez and Pedraza. They say the two lived across from each other until Martinez moved out.

“He lived here for two years but he left. I thought they were friends. I don’t know what happened,” the neighbor said.

But we did learn neighbors knew Martinez had a criminal background. According to court records, Martinez was charged with felony burglary in 1997 and spent time in jail for attempted murder in 2009.

Martinez was set to go to trial on Monday for homicide charge. But because prosecutors needed more time on the case, the Monterey County District Attorney’s office said the original case was dismissed and the exact same charges were immediately refiled. The sheriff’s department says there have been paperwork problems in the past, but won’t say what the error was this time. So now all law enforcement, including Border Patrol, are on the lookout for Martinez.

“I don’t think there’s anything we can do to make sure he doesn’t leave the country. He was released from the jail at that time he can travel around just like anybody else,” said Commander John Thornburg.

It’s unclear where the mistake lies, but neighbors and family members said they’re disappointed. So far, Martinez has pleaded not guilty to the homicide charge. Neighbors said the night of the shooting, Pedraza’s roommates packed up and moved out.