Left inset: Courtney Clinton (City of Vancouver, Wash.). Right inset: Dariel Nunez-Montero (Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The vehicle that Courtney Clinton was found dead in after being allegedly murdered inside of it by Dariel Nunez-Montero in front of her 1-year-old son (City of Vancouver, Wash.).
A Kentucky man is poised to be extradited to Washington state to face charges in the “random and violent” murder of a mother, which occurred in the presence of her 1-year-old son, prosecutors have announced.
Dariel Nunez-Montero, 32, stands accused of killing Courtney Clinton by slashing her throat inside a Ford Edge SUV while her young child was also in the vehicle. This tragic event took place in Vancouver, Washington, in 2024, according to local authorities.
The Vancouver city press release elaborates, “Courtney was found deceased in her vehicle in the 300 block of Blandford Dr. Her infant son was in the car but was unharmed.”
A spokesperson from the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s office confirmed to Law&Crime that Nunez-Montero has been detained in Kentucky on separate charges. With those matters now resolved, he is set to be extradited back to Washington state.
An arrest warrant for first-degree murder was issued for Nunez-Montero in April 2025. Vancouver detectives traveled to Montgomery County, Kentucky, to serve the warrant while he was in custody there, according to city officials.
Nunez-Montero is expected to arrive back in Washington within the coming weeks to face these serious charges.
A probable cause affidavit obtained by Law&Crime alleges that Nunez-Montero’s DNA was found inside the Ford Edge containing Clinton’s body and her crying baby. The vehicle was discovered on Nov. 1, 2024, by a man passing by who initially thought Clinton “had been shot in the back of the head” due to there being “a lot of blood,” according to the affidavit.
The man called 911 and cops arrived to find slash wounds on Clinton’s neck, which led to her death and were caused by an edged weapon, the affidavit says. A GoFundMe launched by Clinton’s sister confirmed that her 1-year-old nephew was “still present in the vehicle” when police arrived at the scene.
Nunez-Montero’s DNA was allegedly found on the front passenger door of the SUV. DNA was also found underneath Clinton’s fingernails, but prosecutors have not said whether it belonged to him.
A doorbell camera allegedly captured Nunez-Montero on video leaving his apartment at 3:31 a.m. on Oct. 29, 2024, with a woman resembling Clinton while carrying a baby carrier. Police say the pair can be seen walking toward the parking lot of Nunez-Montero’s apartment complex; he was captured returning to his apartment at 6:29 a.m. without Clinton, according to the affidavit.
“Courtney’s whereabouts directly after this time are unknown until her discovery on (Nov. 1),” the affidavit states.
Police investigators say Clinton sent her location to a friend at 3:38 a.m., which showed she was at the Walnut Grove Apartments, 4701 N.E. 72nd Ave., where Nunez-Montero allegedly lived. A friend of Clinton’s allegedly told investigators that she was “known to meet men through social media” and she often posted on escort websites.
According to police, the car that Clinton was found in was registered to Enterprise car rental. She was behind on payments, so Enterprise tried calling her on Oct. 30, 2024, and someone who was not Clinton allegedly answered and claimed they found her phone.
The last time Clinton was seen in person was three days before her body was discovered — on Oct. 29, 2024.
