Jose Principe, 28, of Waterbury, Connecticut, died after being shot in the early hours of October 27, 2022. First responders found Principe unresponsive inside his car after it struck a utility pole on Queen Street in Southington around 12:10 a.m. He was taken to a hospital, where staff discovered a gunshot wound to his back; the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner later ruled the death a homicide from a gunshot wound to the torso.

Police encountered a man at the crash scene who initially gave a false name; he was identified as 43-year-old Victor Perez of Meriden. Perez, a convicted felon, was found carrying a handgun and was arrested on charges of criminal possession of a pistol and interfering with officers. Surveillance footage and further investigation reportedly show a confrontation between Perez and Principe in a nearby Cumberland Farms parking lot just before the crash, with Perez at the passenger side when the fatal shot was fired. Authorities say there is no evidence the two men knew one another before the encounter. Two days later, on October 29, 2022, Perez was charged with Principe’s murder; bond was set at $10 million.

Did anyone see Principe or his car in the area that night, or have information about the confrontation in the Cumberland Farms lot?