Gang member arrested in slaying of Dos Palos teen, police say
A 20-year-old man was arrested Thursday in connection with the slaying last month of a Dos Palos teenager, the Police Department confirmed.
Sysco L. Lopez is the “primary suspect” in the death of 17-year-old Luis David Leon, police Chief Barry Mann told the Merced Sun-Star. “This was most definitely gang related.”
Leon was found Feb. 15 near Leonard Avenue and Palo Alto Street. He had been shot at least once in the upper body.
Police on Thursday searched a home in that area. Mann said investigators recovered “very valuable evidence” during the search, but that it was too early to discuss specifics.
During the search, authorities placed Dos Palos High School on lockdown for a short time as a safety precaution. No students were in jeopardy, Mann confirmed.
Mann declined to comment on the motive in the homicide. Lopez and Leon have been identified by police as known gang members.
Lopez called police Thursday afternoon, about three hours after he initially agreed to surrender. He was taken into custody at a home on Valeria Street, Mann said.
Mann said the case remains under investigation and that police may seek charges against others in connection with evidence tampering and destruction, but he declined to elaborate.
The police chief praised the work of the officers involved in the case, including lead investigator Officer Donovan Sizemore. He said officers have invested more than 160 hours investigating the case.
Mann said help from the community was critical to the events leading up to Thursday’s arrest.
Leon’s death was the first homicide in Dos Palos since June 2013.
Lopez is also a defendant in a 2013 assault case believed to have been gang-related. He has pleaded not guilty to felony charges of inflicting corporal injury to a teenager and battery causing serious injury. He and others are accused of attacking a 16-year-old girl in a parking lot near Highway 33.
He is due back in court on that case April 8, according to Merced Superior Court records.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Dos Palos Police Department at (209) 392-2176 or Merced-area Crime Stoppers at (855) 725-2420. Tips are confidential and callers can remain anonymous.
This story was originally published March 5, 2015 at 1:37 PM with the headline "Gang member arrested in slaying of Dos Palos teen, police say."