Police: Killing downtown no random crime

No suspects nor witnesses yet identified

The July 21 fatal shooting of Matthew Corral does not appear to be a random act of violence, a Santa Fe police official said this week.

“At this point it seems more likely that it’s possibly someone who knew him or who met him,” said Deputy Chief Ben Valdez, adding police continue to search for suspects.

Corral, 33, was found lying face down in the street, with a gunshot wound to the chest, near the intersection of West De Vargas Street and Don Gaspar Avenue, at about 12:20 a.m.

Detectives interviewed witnesses in the area — which is steps from the state Capitol and close to several downtown restaurants and bars — and combed through surveillance video from area businesses.

Video showed one vehicle in the area of the shooting, but police have not yet been able to determine if it was

involved, Valdez said.

“We’re still working to get that shored up,” he said.

Corral had been visiting bars in the downtown area that Saturday night, including the Del Charro bar and restaurant on Alameda Street, just across the Santa Fe River from where Corral’s body was found. Police are also looking at reports that he visited the Cowgirl and the Boxcar.

Corral was believed to have been out with friends at some locations that night and at some point, may have gone off on his own. His vehicle also was found in the downtown area.

Two women who had been at Del Charro and were taking an Uber from the area saw Corral’s body in the road and told the driver to stop, police said. Initially thinking Corral was drunk, they turned him over and tried to resuscitate him.

The women told police Corral’s wallet had been lying near his body when they discovered him, but it was unknown if anything had been taken.

While investigators still have not established a motive in the shooting, no one has come forward in the nearly two weeks since Corral’s killing as a witness or suspect, Valdez said.

“I think the claim of selfdefense would be pretty hard to invoke at this point,” Valdez said. “I don’t see any justifiable reason that someone would have struck him down.”

Valdez’s said members of Corral’s family came from California and spoke with police after he was killed.