HARTFORD, Conn. (AP)_ Testimony has begun in the trial of a man accused of gunning down an amateur boxer in Hartford three years ago.

A prosecution witness says 23-year-old Gregory Cuyler, who had a chance to train for the Olympics, was killed outside a Hartford nightclub during a dispute over a drug deal in April 2005

However, the defense claims that Cuyler was an active participant in a shootout that left him dead. The lawyer for Juan Antonio Pena, charged with murder in the shooting, claims the shooting was self-defense.

Pena was arrested about two months after the shooting when he was featured on the TV program ``America's Most Wanted.''

Information from: The Hartford Courant, http://www.courant.com

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)