Clovis death ruled homicide

Clovis police Detective Antonio Bosque places evidence markers outside a store on East Grand where a Clovis man was shot and killed Monday. (CNJ staff photo: Sharna Johnson)

Monday’s death of a 36-year-old Clovis store owner has been ruled a homicide after an autopsy determined he died of a single gunshot wound to the chest, officials said Tuesday.

Emmett Salisbury’s body was found by a friend and co-worker around 1 p.m. Monday inside E’s Enterprises at 701 E. Grand Ave., police records show

The bullet that struck Salisbury hit his heart, according to Lt. Patrick Whitney of the Clovis Police Department. Further testing is being conducted by the Office of the Medical Investigator to determine the time of death in the city’s first homicide in 2007, Whitney said.

Whitney said investigators are still working to determine motive in the shooting and had made no arrests early Tuesday night.

Witness reports to investigators indicate Salisbury was last seen alive Sunday evening when he left a hotel room following an argument with a man described in court records as Salisbury's boyfriend.

Court records show Salisbury and his boyfriend were leasing the small shop where they ran the second-hand store. Police call logs show Salisbury’s boyfriend called police when he discovered the body. He told dispatchers he had not seen Salisbury since he left the Econo Lodge Sunday after they had argument.

Salisbury’s boyfriend could not be reached for comment. He checked out of the hotel room where he'd been staying for about a week on Monday afternoon, according to Andrea Carter, the front desk clerk.

Salisbury’s family members said Tuesday they still weren’t sure what had happened and they did not wish to comment.

Whitney said information that can help reconstruct Salisbury’s final hours is still needed. Police are asking community members with information to call Curry County Crime Stoppers.

The weapon used in the shooting was not found at the scene and Whitney declined to say what caliber was used, citing the ongoing investigation.

Two bags of cocaine and 21 bags of methamphetamine were found Monday night in the office of the store by detectives, according to a search warrant filed Tuesday in the 9th Judicial District Court. Court records do not indicate whether the drugs played a role in the death.