‘It is sad’: HVAC repairman killed on the job; co-worker charged in connection with his death

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC/Gray News) - Memphis police are investigating a shooting on Tuesday that left a man dead.

According to neighbors, the man killed and the suspected shooter were coworkers for an HVAC company.

Authorities later confirmed the two worked for Choates Heating and Cooling.

Memphis police said Ashton Williams, 21, has been arrested in connection with the shooting. His charges include voluntary manslaughter, possession of a firearm during a dangerous felony, property theft, and marijuana possession.

Officers responded to a home in the Midtown area around 11:15 a.m. following the reported shooting. Williams was detained at the scene for questioning before being charged.

The shooting victim, later identified as Larry Swindle, was taken to the hospital in critical condition but ultimately didn’t survive.

Neighbors said the two men were working on an air conditioner at the home before an argument occurred about tools. A fight ensued, and that’s when one of the workers allegedly shot the other.

According to detectives, Williams told them that he shot Swindle in self-defense after he had been punched, put in a chokehold and threatened.

“It is sad. They both just left to go to work and neither one of them will return home,” Midtown resident Dorthy Gibbs said.

Gibbs added that the homeowner whose air conditioner was being repaired was the one who called her, screaming.

“She was screaming and hollering, ‘This man killed this man in the yard!’” Gibbs said. “When she said it, it just kind of knocked me off of my feet because I’m like, ‘Shot?’ You know, I am just in the kitchen preparing my mother’s breakfast.”

Williams is expected to be arraigned on his charges on Wednesday.