John McCarthy
SAN ANTONIO — A man shot his romantic rival more than 12 times, killing him in cold blood, Texas authorities say.
Mason Ray Rodriguez, 21, is now charged with murder, accused of shooting 29-year-old Enrique Javier Perales on Monday, September 8, according to Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar.
Deputies were called to a San Antonio-area subdivision at around 7 p.m. for a report of a shooting and a vehicle “fleeing at a high rate of speed,” the sheriff said. Investigators found the body of Perales, who they say was “shot well in excess of a dozen times.”
An investigation revealed Rodriguez to be the shooter, according to the sheriff, who said he and Perales were in a dispute because they were dating the same woman and involved in a love triangle.
Deputies found Rodriguez at a home close to the shooting scene, and he made statements implicating himself in the death of Perales, the sheriff said. He said he shot Perales in self-defense, but authorities said the evidence suggests otherwise.
Salazar said Rodriguez tried burying the gun used in the shooting, along with a “high-capacity magazine.” Investigators are not ruling out additional arrests, saying there are other witnesses to the shooting they hope to make contact with. Rodriguez was arrested and jailed in the Bexar County Adult Detention Center on a $250,000 bond, records show.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office at 210-335-6000.
By MIKE STUNSON/McClatchy News
