A Riverton man now faces a federal murder charge after prosecutors say he shot another man in the head during a car ride on the Wind River Reservation this past August.
Jose Benito Ocon, 34, is accused of fatally shooting the passenger while the vehicle was still moving after he reportedly asked his girlfriend whether she loved him. After she said yes, court documents say Ocon pulled a gun and shot the victim in the head.
In addition to the murder count, Ocon is charged with shooting a firearm in an act of violence and carrying a firearm in an act of violence — all serious federal offenses that could carry a mandatory life sentence if he’s convicted.
According to a federal affidavit, the victim was riding in the car with Ocon and Ocon’s girlfriend at the time. After the shooting, Ocon is accused of threatening the girlfriend and another passenger with the gun before the girlfriend managed to take it away from him.
Investigators say the group had been drinking and using meth and marijuana before the trip, which started near a residence on the Wind River Indian Reservation. A later traffic stop in Riverton revealed the wounded passenger in the back seat with visible wounds to his face and head, and the driver told officers someone had asked her to take him to a hospital.
Ocon was booked in federal court on multiple counts, and the case is now moving through the federal judicial process in Wyoming. Prosecutors are treating the killing as a premeditated act of first‑degree murder, which is why federal charges were brought.
More details about the victim and the upcoming court dates haven’t yet been released.
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