NEED TO KNOW
Jonathan Joss was allegedly shot and killed by his neighbor in San Antonio on Sunday, June 1
Joss’ husband claims that before the actor’s death, he and Joss were “harassed” by their “homophobic” neighbors
Joss’ castmates, including Parks and Recreation star Chris Pratt, are paying tribute to the late actor
Chris Pratt is remembering his fellow Parks and Recreation actor Jonathan Joss.
Joss was allegedly shot and killed during a dispute at his San Antonio property on Sunday, June 1. He was 59.
Pratt, 45, paid tribute with an Instagram Stories message on Monday, June 2, when he posted a photo of Joss’ obituary, which featured an image of Joss as Chief Ken Hotate on the NBC sitcom. Joss appeared in a recurring role as the leader of the fictional Native American Wamapoke Tribe.
Pratt also pointed out that Joss acted with him in The Magnificent Seven, a 2016 remake of the classic 1960 Western. Joss portrayed Denali, an exiled Comanche warrior. Pratt starred as Joshua Faraday.
“Damn. RIP Jonathan. Always such a kind dude,” Pratt wrote in his Instagram Stories. “Sad to see. Prayers up. Hug your loved ones.”
Ben Cohen/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty
Amy Poehler as Leslie Knope, Jonathan Joss as Ken Hotate in “Parks and Recreation” season 7
Ahead of Pratt’s tribute, Parks and Recreation star Nick Offerman told PEOPLE, “The cast has been texting together about it all day and we’re just heartbroken.”
“Jonathan was such a sweet guy and we loved having him as our Chief Ken Hotate. A terrible tragedy,” Offerman continued.
Joss spent five years on the popular sitcom, which also starred Amy Poehler, Rashida Jones, Aubrey Plaza, Adam Scott, Aziz Ansari and Rob Lowe.
Mitchell Haaseth/NBC
Chris Pratt as Andy Dwyer
PEOPLE confirmed on Sunday morning that the King of the Hill voice actor died at age 59 after being shot by his neighbor, Sigfredo Alvarez Cejam. According to police, authorities responded to a shooting in progress at around 7 p.m., where they found Joss lying “near the roadway.”
They attempted to administer “life saving measures” while waiting for EMS, but Joss was pronounced dead at the scene when paramedics arrived.
Cejam, 56, fled in a vehicle and was detained shortly after. He has been booked for murder, and the investigation is still ongoing, per police.
Joss’ husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, claimed he was present when the incident took place in a lengthy post on Joss’ Facebook page. In the statement, Gonzales alleged their house had burned down three months prior “after over two years of threats” that allegedly went unaddressed by law enforcement.
“Throughout that time we were harassed regularly by individuals who made it clear they did not accept our relationship,” he shared. “Much of the harassment was openly homophobic.”
NBC
Jonathan Joss in “Parks and Recreation” season 3
According to Gonzales, he and Joss went to the property to get their mail when they saw the skull of one of their dogs out in the open, causing them “severe emotional distress.”
“We began yelling and crying in response to the pain of what we saw,” he alleged. “While we were doing this a man approached us. He started yelling violent homophobic slurs at us. He then raised a gun from his lap and fired.”
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He continued: “Jonathan and I had no weapons. We were not threatening anyone. We were grieving. We were standing side by side. When the man fired, Jonathan pushed me out of the way. He saved my life.”
“I was with him when he passed. I told him how much he was loved. To everyone who supported him, his fans, his friends, know that he valued you deeply. He saw you as family. My focus now is on protecting Jonathan’s legacy and honoring the life we built together,” Gonzales wrote.
PEOPLE reached out to the San Antonio Police Department for comment.
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