SOUTH LAKE TAHOE — A South Lake Tahoe man who authorities said shot and killed another man during an altercation over a loud motorcycle in 2018 has pleaded guilty to murder.

Roy Figaro, 62 at the time of his arrest, pleaded guilty March 19 to first-degree premeditated murder and will be sentenced May 7, according to the El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office.

South Lake Tahoe officers responded June 30, 2018, to multiple reports of gunshots fired in the area of Tahoe Verde mobile home park in Tahoe Valley.

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When officers arrived they observed people tending to Christopher William Kitchen, who had been shot twice. While tending to Kitchen, officers were told that the man who shot him was in the home directly across from the crime scene, a press release states.

Officers, fearing more violence, placed Kitchen in a patrol car and transported him to Barton Memorial Hospital, where medics were waiting.

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Shortly after arriving at Barton, Kitchen was pronounced dead.

Figaro was eventually arrested after a standoff with officers.

The release states that 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.

Authorities said that at some point Kitchen joined the argument and pushed Figaro to the ground. In response, Figaro pulled out a gun and shot Kitchen twice.

After the shooting, Figaro said “he back-talked me and deserved it,” and then walked back to his home, the release states.

The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Casey Mandrell, investigated by the South Lake Tahoe Police Department and presided over by Judge Suzanne Kingsbury.

The Tahoe Daily Tribune is a sister publication of the Sierra Sun.