Rudy Ponce Villarreal

Bowling Green police arrested a man Wednesday in the shooting death of Christopher Ramirez.

Rudy Villarreal, 46, 1324 Sun Way No. 6, was charged Wednesday afternoon with murder and tampering with physical evidence in Ramirez’s death, according to his arrest citation.

Police were called to the shooting at 9:23 p.m. Tuesday and responded to Ramirez’s address 1701 McGregor Court, Apt. A. Ramirez, 36, was found shot outside his apartment, Bowling Green Police Department spokesman Officer Ronnie Ward said.

Ramirez, who was shot more than once, was taken to The Medical Center, where he later died, Ward said. 

Ramirez’s time of death was 1:08 a.m. Wednesday, Warren County Deputy Coroner David Goens said.

Before his death, Ramirez told police that Villarreal shot him, according to Villarreal’s arrest citation. Police found Villarreal later, read him his rights and he agreed to speak with police. He told police he shot Ramirez with a handgun, according to Villarreal’s arrest citation.

“After the incident, Villarreal threw the handgun out of the driver’s side window of his vehicle while driving on the road,” according to the citation written by Detective Mike Nade. The citation doesn’t say if the gun was recovered.

Police have not released a motive for the shooting.

Villarreal was arraigned Thursday in Warren District Court, where he pleaded not guilty. A preliminary hearing will be Tuesday.

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An earlier shooting Tuesday on Russellville Road resulted in serious injuries to a Bowling Green woman who was shot several times while attempting to run away from the man accused of shooting her, Warren County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Stephen Harmon said.

Shadonna Coleman, 28, of Bowling Green, was shot several times just before noon Tuesday while running away from a black sedan driven by Willie Lester James Jr., 36, of Winona, Miss., according to a news release from the Warren County Sheriff’s Office. The two had been involved in a domestic relationship.

Logan County sheriff’s deputies captured James near Russellville. He was brought back to Bowling Green, where he was arrested and charged with first-degree assault-domestic violence, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon and tampering with physical evidence. He was lodged in Warren County Regional Jail.

Detectives with the Southcentral Kentucky Drug Task Force saw the suspect’s car cross the county line. They were working undercover on a separate investigation when they heard the vehicle description over the radio, task force Director Jacky Hunt said. Detectives in undercover vehicles followed James and gave his location to Logan County sheriff’s deputies.

Those detectives saw James throw a gun and its magazine from the car.

“We stopped and recovered the gun on the side of the road,” Hunt said.

James didn’t immediately stop for the marked sheriff’s vehicles until a few miles later, when he likely saw officers placing spike strips on the road, Hunt said. At that point, he stopped.

According to James’ arrest citation, Coleman told detectives that James shot her because she was attempting to break up with him. The gun police recovered was a pink handgun. A passing motorist with a dashcam provided video to the sheriff’s office, which shows James firing one shot, according to his arrest citation. 

A Logan County EMS ambulance was passing through the area immediately after the shooting, stopped to assist Coleman and drove her to The Medical Center. She was flown from there to TriStar Skyline Medical Center in Nashville, where she was listed Wednesday in stable condition, Harmon said.

In addition to the charges in Warren County, James was also served with two Simpson County warrants, one charging him with harassing communications and third-degree terroristic threatening involving another woman in Simpson County and a second warrant on a failure to appear charge. The Simpson County woman told police there she at one time had a domestic violence order of protection against James and feels the need to have one again, according to the Simpson County arrest warrant.

While the Simpson County woman was reporting James’ behavior to police, she received several text messages from James in the presence of police and she did not respond, according to the warrant.

The woman told police that one of the messages James sent said, “I will light your people’s house up,” according to the Simpson County warrant.

James’ bond on the Warren County charges is $500,000. His combined bond on the two Simpson County warrants is $800. He is being held in Warren County Regional Jail.

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In a separate shooting investigation earlier this month, a Franklin teen who was shot in the back of the neck in Bowling Green on April 8 has died, Ward said. Justin C. Vaughn, 19, of Franklin, was shot in the 2400 block of Russellville Road during an incident in which Ronnie Guess, 37, of Bowling Green is accused of mishandling a loaded handgun causing it to discharge.

Guess is currently charged with first-degree assault and tampering with physical evidence and is free on bond. Police will be meeting with prosecutors Thursday to discuss new charges against Guess in light of the fact that Vaughn died, Ward said. Ward did not know Thursday morning the time and date of Vaughn’s death.

That information also was not immediately available from TriStar Skyline Medical Center in Nashville, where Vaughn was taken after the shooting.

— Follow Assistant City Editor Deborah Highland on Twitter @BGDNCrimebeat or visit bgdailynews.com.