SAN ANTONIO – A suspect has been arrested in the fatal shooting of a 22-year-old man at an apartment complex in the Medical Center earlier this week, booking records show.
Jonathan Rene Villegas, 22, was arrested Tuesday and charged with manslaughter, according to records with the Bexar County Jail.
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His arrest comes after the victim, identified as Luis Alejandro Castelar, was shot just before 3 p.m. Monday at the Oaks of Northgate apartment complex in the 8000 block of Oakdell Way.
When officers arrived, they found the victim with one gunshot wound to his torso, according to Officer Alicia Pruneda, a San Antonio police spokeswoman. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
A criminal complaint states that the 911 caller told officers he witnessed the shooting.
He said he was playing video games as Castelar was handling a newly purchased AR-15. At some point, he said, the rifle went off and struck Castelar, the complaint states.
At the time the witness did not mention a third person being present at the time of the shooting.
As the witness was giving a statement, police officers were notified of a possible suspect after an attorney representing Villegas called homicide detectives, the document states.
Police told the witness about the new information, and the witness then told them about a third person in the room, investigators said.
The witness said that as he was playing video games, he saw Castelar hand the rifle to Villegas from his peripheral vision, the complaint states.
He said he heard one gunshot, saw Castelar fall to his side and saw Villegas run out of the room, according to the document.
The complaint states that Villegas hired a new attorney, who told officers that Villegas would not provide a statement but “will surrender to police if an arrest warrant is obtained.”
Booking records show Villegas’ bond was set at $75,000.
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