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Charles Beck

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Charles Beck would have turned 45 today.

But 12 days ago, he was beaten to death in a cheap hotel room on Central Avenue near San Mateo Boulevard.

"He had enough money on him, he could have gotten any hotel room in the city," said Albuquerque homicide Sgt. Carlos Argueta.

So detectives aren't sure what — or who — led the former Bureau of Indian Affairs conservation officer to the hotel.

Nor are they able to determine a likely scenario from the many they are considering.

"We don't know if it was a hooker thing gone bad. We don't know if it was an auto theft gone bad," Argueta said.

Beck was on the verge of pleading guilty to stealing a Ford F-350 pickup in 2007 and conspiring with two other men to steal vehicles in El Paso, according to court and police records.

Argueta said Beck was driving an F-350 "dually" when he checked into the former Tradewinds hotel, now an Econo Lodge, but it wasn't a reported stolen vehicle.

Argueta said Beck had checked into his room that day, leading detectives to question why he was in town instead of in Mescalero, where he lived.

Beck served as a conservation officer there for several years and led several competition shooting teams in the area, said his nephew, Mark Brusueles, also a Mescalero conservation officer.

"He was a firearms instructor," Brusueles said.

Brusueles did not want to talk about his uncle further. Neither did Beck's aunt or mother want to discuss Beck, only saying he had been let go from the conservation office "a few years ago" for reasons they didn't want to talk about.

Brusueles said his uncle had recently worked at hauling race horses around the Southwest.

Beck's nontribal criminal record began in 2004 when he was charged with domestic violence involving his children and wife.

He picked up another domestic violence charge before the couple divorced.

Then Beck surfaced in Albuquerque with drug possession charges, driving violations and, most recently, the auto theft allegation.

He was out on bond awaiting a Jan. 30 plea hearing in court when he was found severely beaten in the hotel room Jan. 14.

Witnesses told police they saw a vehicle with two men inside driving away from Beck's room.

It didn't look like he put up a fight, Argueta said. Beck was rushed to the University of New Mexico Hospital where he later died.