Alleged shooter arrested for 2012 homicide
File photo - Evidence markers litter a crime scene.
A fourth person has been arrested in connection with the 2012 death of Emilio Lopez.
Emmanuel Cruz, 29, was arrested in Falls Township, Pa., Monday night by members of the U.S. Marshals Service. He is charged with murder, robbery and related weapons offenses in connection with Lopez’s death.
Three other men, whom are all cousins, were previously arrested in connection with Lopez’s death. Officials say investigators developed new information indicating Cruz was the shooter. Charges against him were signed yesterday, and police apprehended Cruz inside a Falls Township apartment later that night.
Lopez, 34, was killed November 16, 2012, in the 100 block of Kent Street in Trenton. Witnesses reported Lopez was shot at point-blank range when a van pulled up alongside him.
A trio of cousins — Roberto Cruz, Jose Rivera and Kenneth Rivera — were arrested and charged with murder within a week of Lopez’s death; they remain in jail awaiting trial. Emmanuel Cruz is Roberto Cruz’s brother.
Prosecutors say video footage shows Lopez crossing near Kent Street when he is approached by several suspects from different angles. They boxed him in, prosecutors say, and one of them shot Lopez in the back.
Cruz’s bail was set at $1 million.
