Guns blaze in local bar

By Mike Marino
Cibola County Bureau

SAN RAFAEL — The quiet of Saturday night in San Rafael was interrupted by a burst of gunfire that left two Grants residents wounded. The shooting took place at 1:58 a.m. at the Paloma Bar on Main Street in San Rafael, Sgt. Andrew Pingwall of the New Mexico State Police said.

“There were two victims, and both of them are residents of Grants. The first victim has been identified as Favian Chavez, age 40, and the second victim was Dennis Garcia, also 40 years old,” he said. The shooter is identified as 22-year-old Henry Canales who is also from Grants. Canales is described as a being 5 feet 7 inches tall, around 200 pounds, has a shaved head and is currently on parole from state prison.

The motive for the incident is not clear at this time as the state police continue their ongoing investigation, but what appears to have happened is that the two victims were standing near the rear of the Paloma Bar when a white Chevrolet pickup, driven by Canales, drove through the alley at the rear of the bar. The report says Canales fired several shots at the two men standing inside. Chavez was shot in the chest while Garcia sustained wounds in the right arm. The bar owner called 911 immediately and both victims were transported to Cibola General Hospital.

Canales is not in custody as of 9 p.m. Monday and the New Mexico State Police Criminal Investigation is looking for him. If the public has any information on the shooting or the whereabouts of Henry Canales call the New Mexico State Police District Office in Gallup at (505) 827-9321.