San Jose police arrested an 18-year-old San Mateo man in an April 19 fatal shooting near Westfield Oakridge Mall in South San Jose, the police department said Monday.
Matthew Antracoli was located and arrested in Morgan Hill on May 9 and booked into Santa Clara County jail on suspicion of murder, police said.
At about 1:40 p.m. April 19, officers responded to the 1000 block of Blossom River Drive in San Jose on a report of a shooting, police said. When they arrived, they found a man suffering from at least one gunshot wound. He died at the scene.
The victim was identified by family and friends as 41-year-old Jorge Torres Maestre. He had been out walking his dog when he was shot.
While police are still investigating a motive, they believe it may have something to do with Maestre's dog, a purebred pit bull.
"The victim was by all accounts just an average citizen, going about their business, walking their dog," San Jose police Sgt. Jorge Garibay said. "They were confronted by the suspect, which we're still trying to figure out whether or not a robbery for the dog was occurring. However, it ended with the victim being shot and unfortunately being pronounced deceased there at the scene."
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Trini Torres, Maestre's mother, said her son was often approached about his dog Bella.
"Jorge would always tell me that when he walked the dog, people would stop and say, 'You have a beautiful dog.' But he said, 'No, 'I'm not selling my dog," she said.
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Torres said her son lived with her and took care of her as she battled health issues.
"He was a good son," she said. "He used to take care of me because I have diabetes. He was my soul, my roommate. He was always telling me, 'Did you drink your medicine? Did you do your shot?"
This was San Jose's ninth homicide of 2023.