If you were anywhere near the internet in 2017, you remember "The Race." It was everywhere. The video featured a skinny teenager named Taymor McIntyre—better known as Tay-K—posing next to his own wanted poster. It wasn’t a gimmick. He was actually a fugitive at the time.
People often ask how many people did Tay K kill because the internet has a way of blurring the lines between rap lyrics and reality. There are rumors of three, four, or even five victims. But when you look at the cold, hard court records, the number is two.
He wasn't just some kid playing a character. The legal system caught up with him in a massive way. Today, he’s sitting in a Texas prison with a release date that most of us won’t live to see.
The Ethan Walker Case: The Beginning of the End
The first death linked to Tay-K happened in July 2016. He was only 16 years old. This wasn't a solo mission; he was part of a group of seven people who planned a home invasion in Mansfield, Texas. They thought they were going to find a stash of drugs and money.
They found 21-year-old Ethan Walker instead.
Walker was shot in the stomach and died. During the trial, it came out that Tay-K didn't actually pull the trigger—that was Latharian Merritt. But under Texas law, if you're part of a conspiracy to commit a felony and someone gets killed, you're just as liable.
- The group broke in.
- Walker told them he didn't have what they wanted.
- He was shot anyway.
Tay-K was arrested and placed on house arrest. Most kids would have stayed put and prayed for a light sentence. Tay-K did the opposite. He cut his ankle monitor and tweeted, "fuck a house arrest." That was the start of the "race" that made him famous and eventually sealed his fate.
The Second Victim: Mark Anthony Saldivar
While Tay-K was a fugitive, he ended up in San Antonio in April 2017. This is where things got even more violent. According to prosecutors and witness testimony, Tay-K and his associates picked up 23-year-old Mark Anthony Saldivar, who was a photographer.
The plan was supposedly to rob him.
💡 You might also like: Orlando Bloom in the nude: Why the paddleboard photo still matters in 2026
It happened in a Chick-fil-A parking lot. Saldivar was robbed of his camera equipment, but he didn't go down without a fight. He actually jumped onto the hood of the car to stop them from getting away. That’s when Tay-K—who was sitting in the back seat—shot him through the windshield.
Unlike the first case, Tay-K was the one who pulled the trigger here.
For years, this second case was looming over him while he was already serving time for the Walker murder. In April 2025, a jury finally handed down a verdict for the Saldivar shooting. He was found guilty of murder, though he escaped the "capital murder" charge which would have meant life without parole.
Debunking the Myths: Was There a Third Person?
You might hear people bring up Sara Mutschlechner. She was a University of North Texas student who was killed on New Year’s Day in 2016. Tay-K was in the car when it happened.
He was there. He saw it. But he didn't do it.
The shooter was Eric "Santana Sage" Johnson, a fellow member of the Daytona Boyz rap group. Because Tay-K was a bystander in that specific instance, he was never charged for her death.
📖 Related: Elon Musk Child Human Shield: What Most People Get Wrong
There was also a 68-year-old man named Skip Pepe who was brutally attacked and robbed in a park while Tay-K was on the run. Pepe survived, but the testimony he gave during Tay-K’s sentencing phase was devastating. It painted a picture of a young man who wasn't just caught up in bad situations but was actively seeking out violence.
The Reality of the Sentence
So, how many people did Tay K kill? Legally and factually, he is responsible for the deaths of Ethan Walker and Mark Anthony Saldivar.
In 2019, he was sentenced to 55 years for the Walker case.
In 2025, he was sentenced to an additional 80 years for the Saldivar case.
The judge ruled that these sentences would run concurrently. Basically, he’s serving the 80-year stretch. Even with the possibility of parole, he has to serve a massive chunk of that time before he’s even eligible to apply.
It's a grim ending for a kid who had a multi-million dollar record deal on the table. He traded a rap career for a lifetime behind bars. For the families of Ethan Walker and Mark Anthony Saldivar, no amount of years can bring their sons back, but the 80-year sentence offers a sense of finality that was missing for a long time.
Key Takeaways for Understanding the Tay-K Case
- Total Convictions: Two counts of murder.
- Direct Responsibility: He was the shooter in the Mark Anthony Saldivar case but a co-conspirator in the Ethan Walker case.
- Current Status: Incarcerated at the John B. Connally Unit in Texas.
- Sentence Length: 80 years total.
- Parole Eligibility: Not for several decades.
If you are looking for more details on the legal proceedings, you can find the full trial transcripts and victim impact statements through the Bexar County and Tarrant County court archives. Staying informed on the actual court findings is the only way to separate the viral myths from the tragic reality of these events.