A man being held in a Paulding County, Ga., jail is facing murder charges in Cherokee County, Ala., after a weekend shooting.
Authorities in Alabama say 19-year-old Matthew Manuel Gonzalez shot a man at a home in the Salem community overnight Saturday or early Sunday, officials said. Cherokee County sheriff's investigators Josh Summerford and Michael Green interviewed Gonzalez at the Paulding County jail.
The victim was identified as 45-year-old Matthew Lee Smith, Cherokee County Coroner Jeremy Deaton said Monday. Smith had a single gunshot wound to the head and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Deaton described the incident as "complex." An autopsy was being performed Monday morning, he said.
Cherokee County Sheriff Jeff Shaver said Gonzalez was arrested in Paulding County by the state patrol in Georgia early Sunday on DUI and other charges and is awaiting extradition to face the murder charge. Troopers also charged Gonzalez with violation of the open container law, driving without a license and a traffic-related charge, Paulding County jail records show.
Cherokee County Sheriff Jeff Shaver said Smith and Gonzalez are related and the slaying happened at Smith's home on County Road 326 in southeast Cherokee County not far from the Georgia state line. County Road 326 is a dirt road in a remote, wooded area of the county with very few homes.
A handgun, believed to be the murder weapon, was recovered by investigators, Shaver said.
Gonzalez was driving Smith's vehicle when he was stopped by Georgia troopers in Paulding County, Shaver said. Georgia and Alabama officials worked together to link Gonzalez to the killing.
Shaver said that although Smith's vehicle was taken, theft is not believed to be the motive in Smith's slaying but is the factor that increases the charge to capital murder. The sheriff expressed his appreciation for the efforts of investigators, the coroner's office and the Jacksonville State University Center for Applied Forensics.
"This is a sad thing for the Smith family," Shaver said Monday. "I know all their family, and this is a real tragedy."
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569. Follow him on Twitter @BenBenton or at www.facebook.com/benbenton1.