Background: The area near the Wind River Reservation in Riverton, Wyo. (Google Maps). Inset (left): Jose A. Gonzalez (Fremont County Sheriff's Office). Inset (right): Rex Allen Lofts (Davis Funeral Home).
A Wyoming man has been arrested in connection with the ambush-style murder of another man who was believed to be a domestic abuser.
Jose A. Gonzalez, 55, was charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of 72-year-old Rex Allen Lofts. According to an affidavit obtained by local news outlet Cowboy State Daily, an agent from the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) who was investigating the shooting death of Lofts, who was found dead in his truck on April 21, 2025, said that a network of informants had similar stories about what happened to Lofts.
So far, physical evidence has reportedly been tied to only one suspect: Gonzalez. He is accused of luring Lofts to a property on the Wind River Reservation known locally as "The Farm," where five other people were waiting to ambush him.
According to the affidavit, a central figure in the case was identified as E.E. Authorities said E.E. was the nephew of a woman Lofts was dating in 2024, and Lofts allegedly abused her. The informant told the agent that E.E.'s aunt showed up at his house bruised and "bleeding from her nose." The same informant said that E.E. later told him that he had "done it," meaning that he killed Lofts.
After speaking to informants, authorities determined that the person who rode with Lofts to the Farm was Gonzalez. According to the affidavit, Gonzalez's DNA was found on the steering wheel of Lofts' truck, where his remains were found months later, and on Lofts' turned-out pants pockets.
Authorities believe the alleged crime took place around Dec. 2, 2024. The motivation, according to the informant who spoke with E.E., was retaliation for the alleged assault on E.E.'s aunt. E.E. reportedly told the informant that he wanted to "scare" Lofts "[b]ecause he kept putting his hands on my auntie."
When the DCI agent spoke to Gonzalez, he said that he rode in the cab of Lofts' truck with him to the Farm after Lofts believed that his girlfriend was there to have a talk. Authorities said that it was Gonzalez who told Lofts that she was there. When the two men arrived at the Farm, they were met by the five men, who were allegedly waiting for him and opened fire on Lofts. Gonzalez said that during the alleged shooting, he "kind of rolled out the side of the door."
After the alleged shooting, three of the suspects moved Lofts' body out of the driver's seat, robbed him of $90, the jewelry he was wearing, his gun, and 3 grams of meth, officials say. One of the men allegedly got into the driver's seat of Lofts' red pickup, while E.E. and another suspect got into their own vehicle and followed behind as they drove to the location where Lofts' pickup was eventually found with his remains inside.
According to Cowboy State Daily, Gonzalez was charged with first-degree murder, accessory before the fact of aggravated assault and battery, and accessory before the fact of aggravated robbery. He was booked into the Fremont County Jail, where he remains in custody. His next court date was not available.
No other suspects have been arrested in connection with the death of Lofts.