A plus-sized woman from Ohio who had six polyamorous lovers has been sentenced to 22 years in prison for ordering the brutal assault of one of her boyfriends. Martina Esqueda, 29, of Toledo, was sentenced in a Lucas County court on Thursday for her role as the ringleader behind the attack on Austyn McClellan.
The Assault
Esqueda, her husband Michael Esqueda, and five of her boyfriends—McClellan, Aaron and Austin Bradshaw, Chance Johnston, and David Cessna—all lived together in a house in Toledo. The 29-year-old ordered her other boyfriends to take McClellan to a Red Roof Inn in Maumee, where they beat him with fists and baseball bats for 10 days. He suffered multiple broken bones and was deprived of sleep and food, according to the Toledo Blade.
Mastermind Behind the Attack
Police alleged that Esqueda was the mastermind, giving direct orders to her boyfriends to beat and assault the victim. She was sentenced to eight years for first-degree kidnapping and seven years each for two felony counts of second-degree assault, to be served consecutively. Her husband received 16 years for the same charges. The other men received varying sentences, while Cessna's trial is set to begin next week.
The Trigger
McClellan told police the ordeal began after a dog fight broke out at Esqueda's home. When he and Esqueda tried to break up the brawl, she suffered a broken arm. Instead of explaining what happened, Esqueda allegedly falsely blamed McClellan for breaking her arm, sparking the brutal revenge.
Rescue
McClellan was rescued only when his captors allowed him a brief trip to a Speedway convenience store on March 21, 2025. During that moment of freedom, he contacted someone who alerted his mother. She rushed to the Red Roof Inn, and police were called. Officers obtained warrants, placed the hotel under surveillance, and arrested all six suspects before they could flee. McClellan was rushed to the hospital with injuries covering his entire body.
Victim's Statement
In a letter read in court on Thursday, the victim said he still suffers from nightmares. 'None of this would have happened had you not been the ringleader or mastermind behind every bad thing that happened to me,' he wrote. He added that he was forced to stay in the home and 'never did anything to any of them or the animals living in the house.'
Defense Argument
Esqueda's attorney argued that the obese woman had been sexually abused as a child and spent her late teens in foster care, giving her an inability to love. 'She does not understand love, because she has never felt it,' Attorney Morgan Isenberg said. 'The people who were supposed to love her, supposed to support her, supposed to help her grow, they broke her.'
In a statement to the court, Esqueda admitted to McClellan that she 'should have been a friend when you needed me.' 'Instead of knocking you down when you were already down,' she said. During the investigation, police discovered that Esqueda maintained romantic relationships with all five of her male accomplices and had multiple children with them.
