TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)— New details have been revealed in the arrest of 30-year-old Wilson Chavez, who was arrested Monday night after a shooting in downtown Terre Haute.
According to court documents, officers with the Terre Haute Police Department were dispatched to the Candlewood Suites Hotel after receiving a 911 call about shots fired on the 5th floor. Upon entering the 5th floor, bystanders showed officers to a room, where they found the door propped open. When officers entered, they found a male body lying on the floor with what appeared to be several gunshot wounds.
The Probable Cause Affidavit (PCA) states that officers then secured the scene and learned that the occupants of the room were staying at the hotel along with a group of laborers with Champion Contractors visiting for work from out of town. Officers later discovered that Chavez and the victim were the sole occupants of the room.
Court records state that officers then began going through the numerous security cameras throughout the hotel. While looking through the video, officers spotted Chavez entering the area in a grey sweatshirt shortly before the victim. Shortly after the victim arrived, Chavez was seen leaving the building and heading towards a white van in the parking lot, where he reached into the vehicle and went back inside. Officers later found video of Chavez leaving the van with other occupants, walking ahead, and looking agitated, taking multiple looks back.
The documents go on to say that officers interviewed another employee of the company, who said that Chavez had joined the crew at the beginning of the year and had worked on a few jobs with them in Texas. The witness stated that the crew had been in town for around a month while the crew was working on several roofing projects they’d been hired for. The witness also stated that the victim had brought Chavez onto the crew and that he’d witnessed them arguing several times, including earlier Monday.
Court documents say that the witness stated he had heard several gunshots coming from above his room and that the only two from the crew staying on that floor were Chavez and the victim, and that he observed Chavez heading to the van after the shots.
After that, the documents go on to say that Chavez was interviewed. He said that he and the victim did not have any problems, but that the victim and other employees were jealous of his work. Chavez told police that he had gotten into the shower during the time of the shooting and heard the shots in the bathroom. Chavez stated that he had waited a moment to leave the bathroom and that when he did, he saw the victim on the floor, bleeding. Chavez then stated that he pulled the victim’s body from the door by his feet and exited the room, stating he was going to the van to look for his co-workers. Chavez said he went to his boss’ room after that and had him call 911. Chavez claimed that he didn’t have a gun, did no harm to the victim, and that someone had knocked on the door and shot the victim.
Documents state that after a search warrant was obtained for the rooms and van, crime scene technicians were able to find a handgun with red stains on it lying next to a wall by a bed in the room. Technicians also found several bullet holes in different parts of the room that also went into the hallway, indicating that the shots had come from inside the room, disproving Chavez’s statement. The scene also indicated that the victim had fallen into the doorway, blocking it and would have had to be moved, as Chavez said. The surveillance video also showed no one else entering or exiting the room.
Chavez is set to make his first appearance in court on Friday.
