A man was shot to death after he and his roommate got into a fight at their Mira Mesa home Friday. San Diego police are calling this case a homicide.



Next door neighbor Amanda Case told NBC 7 the argument between the roommates seemed to simmer over the lunch hour at a home in the 9000 block of Jergens Court.



"I heard some noises in the backyard," she said. "There were somethings being moved or thrown around. It was one of the older gentlemen that lived there."



At about 2:45 p.m., homicide investigators said they found a 46-year-old man dead from an apparent gunshot wound to his upper body at the home, according to SDPD Lt. Paul Rorrison.



Another man at the house was detained for questioning, and police said he told them the fight ended in a suicide, not a homicide.



Officers had to wait for a search warrant before they could get in and investigate further.



The investigation revealed a physical altercation did take place between the two men, though it is unknown what they were fighting over.



Police said the surviving roommate, Gerardo Zarate, 48, was ultimately arrested and charged with murder. He was booked into San Diego Central Jail and is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday.



The victim’s name has not yet been released, pending the notification of his family, police said.



The homicide case remains under investigation. Anyone with information should contact the SDPD’s Homicide Unit at (619) 531-2293 or Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.

