Man accused of kidnapping to appear in court

Santos Martinez was arrested in June after an alleged incident involving a 15-year-old girl

A 38-year-old transient accused of trying to “snatch” a 15-year-old girl in Canyon Country last summer, and whose mental competency was called into question last month, is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday.

Santos Martinez, charged with kidnapping, is set to appear Tuesday in San Fernando Superior Court.

Martinez was arrested in June after an alleged incident that happened on the 18300 block of Soledad Canyon Road, near the intersection of Sierra Highway and Soledad Canyon Road.

“A female, 15, was standing in a parking lot when she was approached by a Hispanic male,” Sgt. Michael Konecny of the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station told The Signal at the time.

“He tried to strike up a conversation with her, asking her for her name and phone number. Then he asked, “Can I kiss you?’ She said, ‘I don’t know you, get away from me.’

“He then grabbed her in a bear hug and dragged her northbound to a parking lot,” Konecny said in June.

He said she then “began screaming for help. She was heard by some bystanders who responded and later directed deputies to where they saw him run.”

Deputies found the suspect in an alleyway behind the Boot Barn store.

“The victim was moved a short distance against her will,” Shirley Miller, spokeswoman for the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station, said at the time of his arrest.

Last month, Martinez appeared in the same court and was ordered to have his mental competency assessed under 1368 section of the state’s criminal code.