Corpse in stable near Kentucky Derby track IDed

Last Updated 10:45 p.m. ET

(CBS/AP) LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Police said they are investigating as a homicide a body found in the stable area of Churchill Downs the morning after the Kentucky Derby.

The man was discovered by a Churchill Downs security guard, reports CBS Affiliate WLKY.

The victim was identified as Adan Fabian Perez, 48, of Guatemala.

"Homicide detectives later got to the scene and were able to determine that there is foul play involved; however we still do not have an exact cause of death," said police spokeswoman Alicia Smiley.

Police said the man was injured during an altercation and those injuries led to his death.

"Our investigation is ongoing to determine specifically why he would've been at this location and also what would've led to his death," Smiley said.

WLKY correspondent Gary Parker spoke with several stable workers, who primarily speak Spanish. They said all Churchill Downs stable workers know each other, but they said they didn't know who was killed.

Some also said they didn't want to get mixed up in problems, or feared losing their jobs.

Smiley said the body was found inside a barn on the backside of the track, just four barns away from where I'll Have Another was kept.

But police said there is no connection to yesterday's Kentucky Derby winner.

Louisville Metro Police spokeswoman Alicia Smiley also said Sunday the death didn't appear to have any association with Churchill Downs, the historic Louisville track that on Saturday saw a record attendance of more than 165,000 for the 138th running of the Derby.

The Derby winner and his trainers were busy with post-Derby media activities Sunday morning, with little talk of the activity at the barn about 150 yards away.

Louisville police spokeswoman Alicia Smiley says authorities were called early Sunday morning to a barn on the backside of the track where the derby took place the night before.

Smiley said police are conducting a death investigation, and a coroner had been called to the scene. She says the body is believed to be a man.

About a week after the Kentucky Derby last year, jockey Michael Baze's body was found in a vehicle near the stables at the famed Louisville track. His death was ruled an accidental overdose.