SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio police arrested a 24-year-old man Tuesday and charged him for the November slaying a 73-year-old man who was found bludgeoned to death in his apartment more than a week after he was killed.
Investigators allege Juan Cantu, 24, killed Guillermo Ybarra, 73, about 10 to 12 days before his body was discovered by officers on Nov. 25, 2014.
Residents at the Villa Del Sol Apartments located in the 900 block of Vance Jackson were complaining of a foul odor and called police to investigate the source of the smell.
Officers tracked the odor to Ybarra's unit.
"He was suffering from some sort of a head injury and had been dead for several days," Sgt. Javier Salazar said.
Homicide detectives believe Ybarra and Cantu met on the day the crime was committed.
Ybarra picked Cantu up and they went out to dinner together before returning to Ybarra's apartment where the pair watched television together.
"At some point in the evening there was some sort of a disturbance, some sort of an argument, between the two and it's believed the suspect actually beat the victim to death with a dumbbell," Salazar said.
Investigators noted that there was no forced entry into Ybarra's apartment, leading them to suspect he knew the killer. Their investigation also revealed the killer took several items from Ybarra's unit, including his wallet and other items as well as his car.
The victim's vehicle was located at Cantu's apartment complex a few days later.
Investigators turned to the public for help solving the crime last December.
Salazar said it was a tip called into Crimestoppers that helped investigators put all the pieces together.
"So we're thankful to the viewers that watched it and did the right thing, gave us a call and of course led us to the tip that broke the case wide open," Salazar said.
Cantu was to be booked on one count of murder.
He's currently being held at the Bexar County jail.