Skeletal remains found in shallow grave north of Santa Fe identified as missing person

Jul. 30—Authorities have identified the skeletal remains discovered in a shallow grave in June on the city's north side as Santos Treto Ortiz, a Santa Fe man reported missing two years ago.

He was identified using dental records, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said in an interview Tuesday.

"We are working right now with Santa Fe Police Department to determine the circumstances of his death," Mendoza said.

"There appears to be trauma to the skull," the sheriff said, adding officials are still waiting for the state Office of the Medical Investigator to determine Treto Ortiz's official cause of death.

Santa Fe police Lt. Jimmie Montoya, asked if the death was being investigated as a homicide, said in a statement, "In speaking with the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office, they have not received the cause of death report from the office of the medical investigator. Our Detectives are trained to treat death investigations as a suspicious deaths until we can gather the evidence and reports from OMI."

A pedestrian discovered Treto Ortiz's skeleton just a few feet off a road that led to a utility box near Las Campanas. The remains appeared to have been unearthed by recent rains, according to a report.

"We are pretty confident where he was located was not the scene of the crime," Mendoza said Tuesday.

Treto Ortiz was reported missing by family members in June 2022 after "they received a phone call regarding concern for his welfare," according to a statement the Santa Fe Police Department posted on social media at the time. Another post earlier this month offered a $1,000 Crime Stoppers reward for information about Treto Ortiz's disappearance or whereabouts. His last known location was Cottonwood Mobile Home Park, according to the post.

Treto Ortiz, who was 31 at the time of his disappearance, was the eldest of seven children born to Mexican immigrants and the father of three children, his sister Gladys Treto Ortiz said Tuesday.

He attended Capital High School but dropped out in 10th grade and "dealt with the wrong people," she said.

After their father died 11 years ago and their mother died four years ago, her brother had seemed lonely, she said, but he kept to himself and never talked about his feelings.

Still, Gladys Treto Ortiz said her brother was a "pretty happy guy" and always urged others to be happy. He shared food and money with people in the homeless community because he hated to see them suffer, she said.

Though he wasn't often around, Gladys Treto Ortiz said, her brother always found a way to check on the family and sometimes called to borrow money.

When they stopped hearing from him in 2022, she said, they reported him missing to police.

She has no idea what might have happened to her brother, she said, and the family still has not received his remains from police so they can cremate him and hold a funeral.

"Wherever he is I hope he is in a better place now, and I love him. That's all I can say," his sister said.

Santos Treto Ortiz — also identified in court records as Santos Trento and Santos Treto — had a criminal history in the Santa Fe area dating back to 2009, according to online court records. He had three active warrants for his arrest charging him with failure to appear when he disappeared.

He was arrested multiple times on charges of possession of stolen property and receiving or transferring stolen motor vehicles.

In one case, which originated in 2009 but dragged on into 2015, he was charged with multiple counts of commercial burglary and conspiracy. He was granted a conditional discharge and placed on probation before later being sentenced to jail time for multiple probation violations.

The case file indicated he was ordered to pay restitution to Santa Fe businesses including Lithia Motors, LuckyBean, Miklo's Coffee House, Outback Steakhouse, Premier Honda, Red Lobster and Santa Fe Brewing Co.

During his most recent arrest, in 2021, deputies performed lifesaving measures.

He had been pulled over and accused of driving a vehicle reported stolen, according to a statement of probable cause, and was charged with possession of stolen vehicles, resisting arrest, possession of a controlled substance and criminal trespass.

He attempted to flee, but a sheriff's deputy sprayed him with pepper spray, according to the statement.

"He did not respond. ... At this time I realized the call turned from a criminal situation to a medical emergency," the deputy wrote. "We devised a plan to remove the [male] to safety. Once on the street the male's body became limp and he stopped breathing."

Treto Ortiz was given six shots of Narcan — a drug used to treat an opioid overdose. Deputies also performed rescue breathing before medics arrived, according to the statement.

"While at the hospital a bag of suspected 'meth' was located in his pockets," the deputy's report says.