PORTLAND, Ore.—An Albuquerque, New Mexico man was sentenced to federal prison today after spending years abusing, terrorizing, and threatening to kill his ex-wife, former mother-in-law, and young daughters.

Oscar Adrian Marquez, 46, was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release.

“Oscar Marquez is a serial abuser and perpetrator of domestic violence. Over a period of many years, he physically and emotionally tormented his spouses, daughters, and their extended families. I applaud the Portland Police Bureau’s quick and heroic efforts to arrest Marquez before he could inflict further and potentially deadly harm on his family,” said Scott Asphaug, Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

“I’m grateful that this violent abuser is being held accountable for his actions,” said Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell. “My thanks go to the Portland officers who acted so quickly and professionally, and to the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their hard work investigating and bringing this case to successful prosecution.”

“The stalking and violent threats were purely about control for Mr. Marquez, just as the abuse had been. His ex-wife and children suffered for years, and despite every effort to escape, they lived with the fear that he would find them. I am hopeful that today's lengthy sentence will, hopefully, allow them the peace to move forward with their lives,” said Kieran L. Ramsey, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Oregon.

According to court documents, Marquez’s history of abusing women spans more than 20 years, including the physical and emotional abuse of his first wife and their young daughter. This abuse continued into his daughter’s adolescent and young-adult years when Marquez would lock her in her bedroom for hours and beat her with a belt. As an adult, his daughter went to great lengths to hide from her father and, in 2018, secured a 40-year protective order against him.

Marquez remarried in 2001 and has two teenage daughters with his second wife. Marquez continued his abuse with his new family. In 2007, Marquez was convicted on two domestic violence charges after punching his second wife in the face while she was holding their then-three-year-old daughter. The final straw for his second wife came in August 2013, when Marquez physically assaulted her and trapped her and her daughters in separate bedrooms. In their divorce proceedings, Marquez’s second wife was given sole custody of their children and Marquez’s limited visitation rights were later revoked.

In the summer of 2014, Marquez kidnapped his two youngest daughters and fled to Mexico, resulting in an international amber alert. Marquez and the children were found several days later at a U.S.-Mexico border crossing. He was arrested and later convicted for the kidnapping. A new protective order was issued in October 2014, barring Marquez’s contact with his second wife and youngest daughters. Marquez repeatedly violated this new order. Thereafter, from January 2014 through July 2019, Marquez engaged in an increasingly aggressive course of conduct to intimidate and harass his second wife and her family.

In 2017, Marquez’s second wife changed her name and moved to Portland with her teenage daughters after learning of Marquez’s intent to murder her and her family. She provided a picture of Marquez to her daughters’ new school and advised them of the threat he posed to their family. In July 2018, Marquez posted a note on his mother-in-law’s fence in New Mexico threatening that he was on his way to find her daughter. In July 2019, Marquez obtained his second wife’s new name and Portland address via an online people-finding service.

On July 29, 2019, Marquez’s second wife observed him driving slowly past her Portland home in a vehicle with New Mexico license plates. She barricaded her teenage daughters into a room, contacted the Portland Police Bureau, and prepared for a confrontation with Marquez. While a Portland police officer was writing a report at their home, Marquez again drove past the residence. Several Portland police officers quickly conducted a traffic stop and arrested Marquez. Inside his vehicle, they located a replica Glock handgun, a face mask, gloves, several digital devices, and more than $2,000 in cash.

On January 14, 2020, a federal grand jury in Portland returned a five-count indictment charging Marquez with cyberstalking, stalking, and interstate violation of a protection order. In November 2020, Marquez was convicted at trial on all charges.

During his trial, prosecutors learned that Marquez attempted to intimidate a government witness while in custody and lied under oath during his trial testimony. Prosecutors sought and obtained sentencing enhancements for this conduct.

During sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge Michel W. Mosman ordered Marquez to pay $10,818 in restitution to his victims.

Acting U.S. Attorney Asphaug made this announcement with Chief Lovell and Special Agent in Charge Ramsey.

This case was jointly investigated by the Portland Police Bureau and the FBI. It was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

All forms of stalking, including cyberstalking, are serious crimes prohibited by the federal Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). In 2013, an amendment to VAWA made it illegal to use any computer or electronic communication service to conduct activity placing a person in reasonable fear of death or serious bodily injury, or that causes substantial emotional distress.

Anyone with information about real or perceived threats of violence should call the FBI at (503) 224-4181 or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.

For immediate threats to life and safety, please call 9-1-1.

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