Reinaldo Ortiz Guzmán, a 36-year-old crane operator, was killed in Salinas on Wednesday afternoon, nearly a month after he reported a shooting attack at his home. On September 8, Ortiz Guzmán told police that he was sleeping at his residence in the Coco neighborhood when he was awakened by gunfire at 2:40 AM. He immediately woke up his wife and daughters and they took cover.
When police arrived, they heard more shots and found a Kenworth Construction crane on fire. Multiple bullet impacts were observed on the walls, windows, and doors of the residence, and three vehicles were damaged, including the burned crane. Inspector José A. Torres Ruiz, director of the Guayama Criminal Investigations Corps (CIC), said the case is still under investigation and he does not rule out a link to the killing, adding that investigators have no doubt it could be the same person.
Ortiz Guzmán managed to call the Salinas police station at 11:00 AM on Wednesday to ask for help, but officers who arrived found him dead. The Explosives Division of Ponce and the CIC of Guayama are handling the investigation.