An Indiana man is invoking the state’s stand your ground law after fatally shooting a woman who showed up at the wrong address.
Authorities charged 43-year-old Curt Andersen with one count of felony voluntary manslaughter in the hooting of Maria Florinda Rios Perez de Velasquez.
Boone County Prosecutor Kent Eastwood said his office carefully reviewed all evidence before filing the charge.
“As prosecutors, we have a solemn responsibility,” he said during a news conference. “We cannot allow emotion to guide our decisions.”
“Our duty is to examine the facts, apply the law fairly and equally, and ensure that justice is served without bias and influence,” he added. “That is the only way the law can truly be just.”
Police responded around 6:50 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 5, to a 911 call reporting a “possible residential entry in progress” at Andersen’s home in Whitestown.
That’s where they discovered Perez on the front porch with a gunshot wound to the head and her husband Mauricio Velasquez cradling her lifeless body next to the door of the home.
“Officers acted quickly to secure the home, and get the female moved to a safe location to attempt lifesaving measures, but it was discovered she was already deceased upon the officers’ arrival,” the police said.
“It was later determined that the individuals attempting to enter the home were members of a cleaning crew who had mistakenly arrived at the wrong address.”
Court documents obtained by WTHR described Perez as lying in a “large pool of blood” with a single apparent bullet hole in the door.
Mauricio Velasquez said they had gone to the house to clean and attempted to use keys from their cleaning company, not realizing they were at the wrong location.
He estimated they had been trying to open the door for 30 seconds to a minute before she was shot.
Velasquez noted that did they didn’t cause a ruckus by banging on the door or trying to force it open.
“They should’ve called the police first instead of just shooting out of nowhere like that,” Velasquez told WTTV through an interpreter.
“I never thought it was a shot, but I realized when my wife took two steps back,” he explained to the outlet.
“She looked like she’d been hit in the head. She fell into my arms, and I saw that the blood went everywhere.”
Andersen’s wife, Yoshie Andersen, ended up admitting to police that her husband had previously warned a neighbor he would shoot anyone attempting to break into the house.
She told officers that Andersen shot the firearm from the top of the stairs and then instructed her to call 911.
The affidavit does not indicate when he made the warning to the neighbor.
Andersen is invoking Indiana’s stand your ground law, which allows homeowners to use deadly force if they reasonably believe someone is unlawfully entering their residence.
Police have said there is no evidence Perez tried to enter the home, which Velasquez also told the local news.
Prosecutors maintain that Andersen did not announce himself or try to open the door before shooting off the fatal round and contend he could not have reasonably thought that deadly force was necessary.
Andersen told investigators he and his wife were asleep upstairs when he heard a commotion at the door that sounded like someone using keys or tools, the probable cause statement detailed.
He got out of bed and saw two people outside the door from the top of his stairs.
“What am I going to do? It’s not going away and I have to do something now,” he reportedly said out loud.
After putting rounds into his gun, returned to the windows, where he claimed the couple were “thrusting” at the door, and fired one shot.
The door never opened and Andersen did not call out to them before shooting.
Police discovered a bullet hole in the door, but no evidence of forced entry or contact with the door or its frame.
“It is vitally important for the citizens of Boone County to understand that our decision today in no way should be interpreted as a challenge to Indiana’s stand your ground law, a person’s right to self-defense,” Eastwood detailed.
Andersen’s attorney, Guy Relford, was not happy about the charges filed against his client.
“I look forward to proving in court that his actions were fully justified by the ‘castle doctrine’ provision of Indiana’s self-defense law,” Relford wrote in a social media post.
The death of Maria Florinda Rios Perez de Velasquez is a terrible tragedy that is heartbreaking for everyone involved. And while we are disappointed that the Boone County Prosecutor's Office has elected to file criminal charges against Mr. Curt Andersen, I look forward to proving…
— Guy Relford (@guyrelford) November 17, 2025
“Contrary to the contention of the prosecutor – and without discussing the specific facts of the case – we believe Mr. Andersen had every reason to believe his actions were absolutely necessary and fully justified at the time.”
“Andersen’s actions are being unfairly judged based on facts that were unknowable to him as events unfolded,” he claimed.
