Austin cop faked his own death then fled to Mexico

According to authorities in Texas, 29-year-old Coleman Martin, an Austin police officer, faked his suicide and headed to Mexico.

His wife, Jaclyn Williams, had reportedly called the police to say her husband was suffering “emotional distress.” She said Martin had told her he was having a rough time and that he had to leave, to "clear his head." Williams went on to say that fifteen minutes after Martin left, he texted her an image of a suicide note, written by the Austin cop, saying he was planning to drown himself somewhere near to the Mexican border.

Austin cop did some shopping along the way

According to a report by the New York Daily News, it was later found Martin had drawn $300 from a joint bank account around 45 minutes after he left. Investigators discovered he bought a raft and then took more cash out of the bank account before stopping for lunch at Wendy’s. Martin later stopped in at Best Buy to buy himself an HP tablet. There was evidence to show he had also purchased several concrete blocks and some rope along the way.

Signs of faked suicide by Austin cop

Reportedly the Austin cop was stopped along his route by a Texas trooper, who he told he was heading to Mexico. His car was then found by police Wednesday morning, around 250 miles from Austin at the Amistad National Recreation Area.

Police found the alleged “suicide note” inside the car, but there was no sign of the HP tablet or Martin’s passport.

ABC News reports that police then discovered the raft by a lake, just miles away from Martin’s car.

The raft apparently contained pieces of one of the concrete blocks, as well as scratch marks which indicated one concrete block had been thrown over the edge. Police searched the lake, looking for his body, but came up with nothing.

Woman close to Austin cop reveals the truth

While Williams believed Martin had killed himself because he was “unstable,” it was another woman that Martin was reportedly intimate with that finally confessed he was alive and well in Mexico.

She told them the Austin cop had cooked up the whole story to fake his death. The unnamed woman then showed investigators several emails he had sent her from Mexico. One email described how he set up the suicide scene before jumping on a bike and riding to a local convenience store. He then reportedly threw the bike away, taking a cab to the border crossing, where he then caught a bus into Mexico.

Now Martin is facing a misdemeanor charge for filing a false report after the Austin Police Department said Friday evidence has led investigators to believe he had staged his own death and that he is now living south of the border.