More questions than answers in horrific murders of mother and daughter

CREATED Apr. 23, 2012

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  • People in a neighborhood near Rancho and Washington are living in fear, after a woman and her daughter were brutally attacked and murdered in their own home. Police are still looking for the killer. Video by ktnv.com

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Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- People in a neighborhood near Rancho Drive and Washington Avenue are living in fear after a woman and her daughter were brutally attacked and murdered in their own home.

Police are still looking for the killer.

It has been one week since the mother and daughter were found dead. Responding officers say it was one of the most gruesome crime scenes they've ever experienced.

Crime tape is still up around the home as Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department detectives look for anything that will help solve the horrific murder mystery.

"I hope they get justice," says Tera Link. "I hope and pray this does not become an unsolved case."

Friends, family and neighbors want answers to the questions that now haunt them: Who could have raped and killed 10-year-old Karla Martinez and beat her mother, Yadira, to death?

Karla's father, Arturo, was also badly beaten. He's still in critical condition at University Medical Center.  Friends say Arturo is an electrician and owns Real KO Boxing Club in North Las Vegas.

"They were just beautiful people," says next-door neighbor, Phyllis Groenert. "I didn't notice or hear anything suspicious until police showed up last Monday morning."

Metro was tipped-off by teachers at Hoggard Elementary School.

Two young boys -- one age 9 and the other just 4 years old -- were also home during the attack. They were the only family members not injured. It was the 9-year-old who somehow knew to get to school and tell teachers that his mom and sister were dead.

"I've tried thinking of anything and everything," Groenert says. "They had to have been targeted. But I don't know who would want to do this to them. They had no enemies."

Investigators have scoured the home for evidence and keep watch outside of it 24-hours a day.

A memorial with hand-written messages, flowers and stuffed animals has formed beside the crime tape.

"I want this solved," Groenert says. "I want whoever did this off the street. But until police figure it out, we're just going to have to live this way."

The neighborhood is living on edge but trying to stay strong. A vigil has been held outside the home every night since the crime was first uncovered. It's the community's way of honoring the Martinez family.

"It's just hard to let them go," Link says. "It's unbelievable that somebody could be this cruel."

Las Vegas police have vowed to put every resource into solving this case. Because it's still an ongoing investigation, detectives are not revealing any details.