Las Vegas, N.M., man arrested in shooting death of his visiting uncle

Dec. 6—A Las Vegas, N.M., man has been charged with first-degree murder after telling investigators he accidentally killed his uncle with an assault rifle, then hid the body in an arroyo and burned many of the man's belongings.

Joshua Corbin, 41, turned himself in Sunday morning at the Las Vegas Police Department and was charged Monday in the shooting death of George Bonney, 66. In addition to the murder charge, Corbin faces a charge of tampering with evidence, according to online court records.

Corbin turned himself in only at the behest of his mother, Marie Cook, according to a statement of probable cause filed Monday in San Miguel County Magistrate Court.

Corbin told police Bonney came to Las Vegas on Nov. 26 to visit him and his mother. He met Bonney at a nearby Love's Travel Stop, where they bought an eight-pack of beer, according to the statement.

The pair then went to drink and watch TV at Corbin's trailer on South Grand Avenue. While there, Corbin decided to show his uncle his AK-47 assault rifle, which he grabbed from on top of the refrigerator, according to the statement.

"Joshua advised the gun 'goes off' and shoots George [Bonney] in the back of the head," the statement reads. "Joshua states George is immediately killed and his head slumps back on the couch."

Corbin told police he panicked and dragged his uncle out of the trailer and into his mother's Chevy Suburban. He added Bonney's clothes happened to "fall off" as he was being dragged and was only in his boxer shorts by the time Corbin got him into the vehicle.

As the sun was rising on the morning of Nov. 27, Corbin drove his uncle's body to a property owned by his employer, he told police. According to the statement, Corbin unlocked a gate and drove about a quarter-mile before dumping the body into an arroyo.

Corbin told police he covered Bonney's body with branches and shrubs. Officers found Bonney's body where Corbin had said he dumped it, covered with plywood and debris.

The suspect burned his uncle's belongings and washed Bonney's clothes and couch cushions in a bathtub, according to the statement.

"[Corbin] stated that he burned George's cell phone in a burn bucket outside of his residence," according to the statement. "Joshua also stated he burned a piece of carpet, George's prescription glasses and George's sandals in this same burn bucket."

Corbin told police he and his mother were the only people inside the trailer at the time of Bonney's death and added his mother confiscated the AK-47 on Dec. 3.

According to the statement, Corbin threw away items from Bonney's car, including receipts and napkins "because he did not know if he was going to get rid of the car."

It was not immediately clear where Bonney lived.

Police searched Corbin's trailer and found numerous suspected bloodstains, spent rifle casings, clothes soaking in what is believed to be Clorox, multiple couch cushions with suspected bloodstains and a handgun, according to the statement.

Search warrants were drafted for the vehicles on Corbin's property, including his mother's Suburban. According to the statement, police saw a rifle bag in his mother's car, which may have contained the AK-47 used to shoot Bonney.

Las Vegas police Chief Antonio Salazar said Corbin's mother is a person of interest in the shooting, and she will be subject to more formal interviews as his department continues its investigation.

"There's still investigations looking into any potential charges that she may or may not, [be facing]," Salazar said.

Salazar said his department has not uncovered potential motives for the shooting other than Corbin's own account. He added police don't know how intoxicated Corbin and Bonney were at the time of the incident.

"We're just going off of what his statement was, [which] is that they were drinking," Salazar said. "He didn't tell us, or anybody else that we know of, what his levels of intoxication [were]."

Corbin was booked into the San Miguel County jail around 8 p.m. Sunday, according to the facility's online records. However, court records show Corbin was given conditions of release Monday that include electronic monitoring and house arrest.

A hearing to review potential conditions for pretrial release is scheduled for Thursday.