Man accused in weekend homicide near National Turnpike told police it was self defense

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Louisville man charged with murder after another man was shot to death outside apartments early Sunday is due in court Monday.

Police say they were called to the 7100 block of Yorktown Terrace, off of National Turnpike just before 3 a.m. on June 20, 2021. According to court documents, that's where police found the victim between two vehicles with multiple gunshot wounds.

The victim has been identified as 31-year-old Sandy J. Ferreira of Louisville.

Ferreira was pronounced dead at the scene, and 26-year-old Guillermo Chavez, was taken into custody.

Police say Chavez told investigators Ferreira pointed a gun at him during an argument. That's when Chavez said he struggled with Ferreira, trying to wrestle the gun from his right hand.

During the struggle, the gun went off several times, Chavez said in his statement to police, "striking the victim and causing his death." Police say the location of Ferreira's injuries don't appear to match Chavez's story.

During his arraignment hearing Monday, Chavez was ordered not to have any contact with the victim's family. That's when Chavez, speaking through an interpreter, said that the victim is his brother, and that they both have the same mother. "Am I able to talk to my mother?" he asked.

Chavez remains in custody with a $100,000 full cash bond.

Police are investigating two other homicides that happened Sunday, including one on Date Street in the California neighborhood, and another at the CVS in the Southland Terrace shopping center.

No one has been arrested for either one of those shootings.