Matthew McLaughlin moved west to live with former Army companions before a relationship built through military service ended in his killing.
TAOS, N.M. — Matthew McLaughlin crossed the country to live with two men he knew from Army service, a move friends said was meant to give him a fresh start. A little more than a year later, one of those former soldiers is serving a 44-year prison sentence for his role in McLaughlin’s killing, while the other awaits trial.
The shared military history of McLaughlin, David Degroat and Rainor Joiner has remained one of the most striking facts in a case that investigators say developed from tensions among roommates into a planned killing near Tres Piedras. Degroat was sentenced Aug. 21 after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and five other felony counts. Joiner, who prosecutors allege fired the fatal shots, has pleaded not guilty to the charges still pending against him and is expected to stand trial in December.
Authorities said all three men had served in the same Army unit at Fort Benning, Georgia. McLaughlin, 25, was later described by law enforcement as an Army veteran. Degroat and Joiner, meanwhile, were reported to have active military warrants for desertion when sheriff’s deputies detained them in August 2025. Their military connection helped explain how the three men knew one another but did not, by itself, explain why their living arrangement in rural northern New Mexico ended in violence.
Friends told local reporters that McLaughlin had left family in the East and traveled to New Mexico with people he trusted. He was originally from West Virginia and had been living in the Tres Piedras area when a missing-person report was filed July 31, 2025. Those close to him later described the move as out of character and said they understood he was seeking a new beginning. The people he chose to live with were not strangers he had recently met. They were men linked to him through military service.
Investigators later said problems had developed inside the home. According to court records cited by local news organizations, Joiner complained that McLaughlin was spreading rumors about him, using drugs and bringing unfamiliar people to the residence. Those were allegations attributed to Joiner and have not been established as independent facts about McLaughlin. Authorities said the disputes were later offered as part of Joiner’s explanation for his anger, but prosecutors concluded that the evidence pointed to planning before the shooting rather than a sudden act of rage.
The killing occurred July 25, according to investigators. Prosecutors alleged that McLaughlin was drawn away from the shared residence on the pretext of helping with groceries. Degroat and McLaughlin walked along a dirt road near the property, where authorities say Joiner was waiting. Investigators said Joiner shot McLaughlin multiple times. The state’s account places Degroat inside the plan that led McLaughlin to the location, a role that became central to the criminal case even though authorities have consistently identified Joiner as the alleged gunman.
What happened after the shooting became another major part of the prosecution. Joiner told deputies that McLaughlin’s body was dismembered over the following days and that Degroat assisted in disposing of the remains, according to the sheriff’s office. Authorities said the remains were put into bags and left in several places along U.S. 64 near Tres Piedras. During questioning, Joiner led deputies to locations where bags containing human remains were recovered. The remains were then turned over to the state medical investigator.
Degroat gave investigators an account that sought to place greater responsibility on Joiner. He said Joiner had discussed killing McLaughlin and claimed he tried to talk him out of it. Degroat also alleged that Joiner threatened him with violence if he refused to assist. Those claims became relevant to the defense position, but they did not prevent prosecutors from alleging that Degroat knowingly took part in the crime. He ultimately pleaded guilty not only to second-degree murder but also to conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, assault with intent to commit a violent felony and three evidence-tampering charges.
The conspiracy plea is especially significant because it addresses conduct before the killing, not simply what happened afterward. Prosecutors had initially charged Degroat with first-degree murder and argued during pretrial proceedings that he participated in a premeditated attack. A judge ordered him detained while the case was pending, citing the allegations and the strength of the evidence presented at that stage. The ruling was not a finding of guilt, but it kept Degroat in custody as prosecutors prepared to take the case toward trial.
Instead, Degroat and prosecutors reached an agreement in July 2026. He accepted responsibility under a reduced second-degree murder charge while pleading guilty to additional offenses connected to the alleged planning and concealment. The final sentence was 44 years in prison, including a five-year firearm enhancement, followed by two years of parole. The agreement eliminated the need for a trial in his case and removed the possibility that a jury would decide whether prosecutors had proved the original first-degree murder accusation against him.
For McLaughlin’s family, the plea created conflicting considerations. His mother had publicly questioned why a trial was not being pursued when investigators had obtained extensive statements from the defendants. At the same time, she acknowledged that a plea brought a definite outcome and avoided some of the uncertainty that accompanies a murder trial. At sentencing, relatives focused on McLaughlin’s life and the trust he had placed in men he knew from the Army. Their loss, as described in local reporting, was made harder by the fact that those accused of causing it were people he considered friends.
The allegations against Joiner now stand apart from Degroat’s resolved case. Investigators have said Joiner confessed during questioning to shooting McLaughlin and described his role in concealing the body. Authorities also reported that he showed deputies where remains had been left. Statements made during an investigation, however, are evidence to be tested in court, and Joiner has not been convicted. His pending prosecution will require the state to prove the charges against him under the standards that apply at trial.
The case now carries two sharply different legal statuses for men who once shared a unit, a home and a friendship with McLaughlin. Degroat has admitted guilt to six felony counts and received a decades-long prison term. Joiner remains an accused defendant whose guilt must be determined separately. McLaughlin’s family, meanwhile, is left with a case that has produced one final sentence but not yet a final courtroom reckoning for everyone charged in his death.
Author note: Last updated August 24, 2026.