Montana

Transient found dead in Butte had history in Missoula courts

Posted: Aug 22, 2012 7:16 AM

BUTTE- The homeless man who was found dead in Uptown Butte last week had a history in the Missoula court system.

Eugene Gonzales, 49, whose body was discovered last Sunday on the 900 block of East Front Street, was charged with helping in the deadly beating of another transient more than two years ago.

The victim in the case, John Belmarez, 46, died from blunt force trauma to the head.

Gonzales appeared in court April of 2010 and a jury found him not guilty on all counts. The following August, a jury found the co-defendant Raymond Big Beaver guilty of a lesser assault charge.

Gonzales' body was found early last Sunday and investigators have not discovered any trauma to the body, but believe Gonzales suffered from chronic alcoholism.

Gonzales is originally from the Stevensville-Missoula area.