Morgan Hill man kills wife, drives body to San Jose hospital; three children home
Roy Anthony Lopez, 37, was arrested Saturday after arriving at Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose with his wife's body in the car. Three young children were present at the Morgan Hill home where the killing occurred.
Morgan Hill man arrested after driving wife's body to San Jose hospital
Roy Anthony Lopez, 37, of Morgan Hill was taken into custody on Saturday after he drove to Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose with his wife's body in the passenger seat of his vehicle, nbcbayarea.com reports.
Lopez told hospital staff upon arrival that he had killed his wife. Paramedics responded and attempted life-saving measures, but the woman was pronounced dead in the hospital car park.
San Jose police detained Lopez and contacted the Morgan Hill Police Department. Investigators determined the homicide had taken place at a residence near Vintage Lane in Morgan Hill, where they found evidence of a killing inside the home.
"During the investigation officers determined that it had been committed in Morgan Hill and that the subject then drove the victim to Good Samaritan," said Sgt. Sean Bayard of the Morgan Hill Police Department.
The couple's three children — aged 14, 6, and 3 — were inside the house at the time and are believed to have been present during the attack. Sgt. Bayard confirmed they are now in safe custody.
"They were at the house we believe at the time, and they are in safe custody right now," Bayard said.
Neighbours reported a heavy police presence outside the home for several hours on Saturday before details became public. One neighbour, Pranhleen Bariana, described the discovery as devastating.
"Police were here for quite a few hours," Bariana said. "It's heartbreaking. No circumstances justify taking a significant other's life."
Authorities have not yet released the identity of the victim, pending notification of her family by the coroner's office. Investigators confirmed that no firearm was used in the killing, though the official cause of death has not been publicly disclosed. Morgan Hill police noted that a recent booking photo of Lopez was not available and released an older image from an unrelated prior arrest.
The investigation is ongoing. Police are working to establish a motive, including the reasons behind Lopez's decision to drive to the San Jose hospital after the killing.
"We want to let them know that we're doing our best to follow anything we can on this case so we can present this to the DA office to help them in the prosecution of it," Sgt. Bayard said.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Sgt. Bayard by phone at 408-607-3032 or by email at [email protected].
Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)