Coroner: Man found dead in home was shot

Police discovered the body of a 31-year-old man April 13

A man whose body was found following a police welfare check at an East San Jose home last week was shot to death, according to the Santa Clara County Medical ExaminerCoroner’s Office.

When 31-year-old Ernest Garduno was discovered deceased by San Jose police officers called to a home on Dumont Circle on April 13, police declared the death a homicide but said only that he had suffered “suspicious trauma.”

On Monday, the coroner’s office identified Garduno and confirmed that he had been shot in the chest.

The circumstances of the shooting have not been released by police, and no suspects have been arrested or publicly identified. When asked about the progress of the investigation by this news organization, the Police Department said detectives continue to work on the case.

The death marked the city’s 11th homicide investigated by San Jose police this year, a total that since has reached 12 following a fatal shooting the next day. The city had recorded nine homicides at the same point in 2020.

Anyone with information for investigators can contact the SJPD homicide unit at 408-277-5283 or leave a tip with Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers at 408947-7867 or at svcrimestoppers.org.