Dangerous Fugitive serving two life sentences wipes out an entire family.
On May 12, 2022, Gonzalo Lopez was one of sixteen prisoners on board a Texas Department of Criminal Justice transport bus that was traveling to a medical appointment. Two veteran prison officers were also on board. During the journey, Lopez managed to remove his handcuffs and use a sharp object to cut through a metal door that was separating the prisoners from the driver. He crawled into the driver’s section where he stabbed the driver, who was a corrections officer. The bus stopped and a fight broke out between Lopez and the prison officers. Lopez got off the bus and was followed by the officers. He then returned to the bus and drove off, with the bus now containing no officers on board. As he drove away, the officers fired at the bus and hit the tires. Lopez managed to drive the vehicle for a mile before wrecking it. He then fled the bus on foot and escaped into some woods, where he successfully evaded law enforcement.
On June 2, 2022, exactly three weeks after escaping prison custody, Lopez broke into a ranch owned by the Collins family in Centerville, Texas. At the ranch, he murdered 66-year-old Mark Collins and four of his grandchildren: 18-year-old Waylon Collins, 16-year-old Carson Collins, 11-year-old Hudson Collins (all brothers), and their cousin, 11-year-old Bryson Collins. Medical examiners later disclosed that all five family members died of gunshot and stab wounds. After the murders, Lopez stole several guns from the ranch, including an AR-15,as well as a white pickup truck which he fled in.
A concerned relative of the family that had not heard from Mark contacted the police later that day. Police arrived at the ranch around 6 p.m. and discovered the bodies of the five family members. Lopez was immediately named as a suspect and police soon learned guns and the family pickup truck had been stolen. Police then sent out a statewide alert informing police to be on the lookout for a white 1999 Chevrolet Silverado.
Late on June 2, a deputy sheriff from Atascosa County spotted the pickup truck and confirmed the license plate matched the one stolen. Officers tailed Lopez and were instructed to hold back until he entered Jourdanton, so more officers could assist in apprehending him. Spike strips were laid across the highway Lopez was travelling on, which he drove over, puncturing all of the tires. Lopez then tried to flee but multiple police officers surrounded him. He evaded police and drove through a field before entering the city limits of Jourdanton.
Lopez then shot at police through the truck’s window with an AR-15 style rifle, which he had stolen from the ranch.[20] Afterward, he lost control, drove into a utility pole, and crashed into a fence. He exited the truck and began shooting at officers. Four officers returned fire, killing him. No officer was struck or injured during the exchange of gunfire but Lopez did manage to hit a patrol vehicle’s windshield.
Compiled:
©Maria Ude Nwachi.
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