Man pleads guilty to murder in 2018 shooting of South Lake Tahoe neighbor over motorcycle noise
Submitted by paula on Fri, 04/09/2021 - 5:00am
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A South Lake Tahoe man has pleaded guilty to the first degree premeditated murder of a former neighbor, Christopher William Kitchen.
At 5:30 p.m. on June 30, 2018, Roy Figaro shot Kitchen twice in the street in front of the Tahoe Verde Mobile Home Park and police officers tended to Kitchen's care while Figaro went back into his home across the street from the shooting.
As part of the investigation, officers interviewed witnesses who saw the events leading up to the shooting. It was determined that Figaro walked out of his home and proceeded to get into an argument with a resident over a loud motorcycle. At some point, Kitchen joined the argument and pushed Figaro onto the ground. In response, Figaro pulled a handgun from his pocket and shot Kitchen twice. After the shooting, Mr. Figaro said, “he backtalked me and deserved it,” and then walked back to his home.
Based on the potential threat for more violence, officers from the South Lake Tahoe Police Department (SLTPD) decided to place Kitchen in a nearby patrol vehicle and transport him to the hospital. He was pronounced deceased at the hospital.
Figaro barricaded himself in a home at 1073 B Julie Lane.
The neighborhood was shut down, nearby homes evacuated. SLTPD SWAT and CNT (Crisis Negotiation Team) arrived at the scene, a home on the corner of B Street and Julie Lane near the entrance to Tahoe Verde Mobile Home Park. Several outside agencies also arrived to assist, South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue, El Dorado County Sheriff's Office, California Highway Patrol, Calfire, and California Parks.
Roy Figaro was arrested for the murder of Mr. Kitchen after an 100-minute standoff with police.
On March 19, 2021, Roy Figaro plead guilty. Judgment and sentencing has been set for May 7, 2021. The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Casey Mandrell, investigated by the South Lake Tahoe Police Department, and presided over by the Honorable Suzanne Kingsbury.