The death of a 51-year-old Durango man in April has been ruled a homicide.

Michael Bourriague was found dead at his home April 13 on Plymouth Drive, off Florida Road near Riverview Elementary School, where his property manager checked on him after not seeing him for a few days.

Authorities immediately treated the scene as a possible homicide investigation, but La Plata County Coroner Jann Smith said at the time the cause of death wouldn’t be officially determined until after an autopsy.

An autopsy was completed April 13, but the Coroner’s Office decided it needed to conduct a second autopsy to investigate Bourriague’s injuries further.

On Sunday, the Coroner’s Office officially ruled Bourriague’s death a homicide as a result of “blunt trauma to the head.”

“We had to do more investigating on the injuries that he had, so it took a little while longer,” Smith said Tuesday.

Smith said it appears Bourriague got into an altercation at someone’s house and was hit in the head. She was unsure what object was used.

Bourriague went home after the altercation and died several days later, Smith said. It’s unclear how long Bourriague was in his home before he was discovered dead.

Durango Police Cmdr. Ray Shupe said no arrests had been made as of Tuesday in connection with Bourriague’s death. Shupe said authorities were awaiting result of the most recent autopsy.

“It’s still actively being investigated,” Shupe said.

According to his obituary, Bourriague was born in Taos, New Mexico, but grew up in Durango, attending St. Columba School and Smiley Junior High School. He graduated from Fort Lewis College with a degree in art and business.

Bourriague owned Southwest Painting, the obituary said, and worked in construction and painting in the Durango area. He also volunteered as a DJ for KDUR.

He is survived by his parents, Jack and Nita, of Ignacio; his brother, Peter; and his children Wren, Adrian, Aven and Mirra.

jromeo@durangoherald.com