On February 19, 2017, just before 1:00 a.m., the Tucson Police Department received a 911 call about a possible homicide at a residence in the 3800 block of South Palm Side Drive. The caller stated that his cousin’s boyfriend, 26-year-old Manuel Encinas, called him and advised he was going to kill his girlfriend, 26-year-old Christine Betancourt (caller’s cousin), and then kill himself.
Officers responded to the Palm Side address where they located Betancourt, deceased inside the home with obvious signs of blunt force trauma.
The Tucson Police detectives learned that Manuel Encinas lived at the residence with the victim. Manuel was not at the home when police arrived and the victim’s vehicle was missing. An “Attempt to Locate” was placed on Manuel and the vehicle.
While detectives were investigating the homicide, they were contacted by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. Deputies had responded to an incident at a Circle K on South Nogales Highway and were involved in a shooting at that location. Manuel Encinas was shot and killed during the incident and the victim’s vehicle was located at the scene. Next of kin for Manuel has been notified.
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