INDIANAPOLIS (WRTV) — The Marion County Prosecutor's Office filed multiple charges Friday against Victor Garcia-Lopez who is accused of shooting an Indianapolis Metropolitan police officer and attacking a woman and her landlord on May 8.
Garcia-Lopez, 24, of Indianapolis, is facing the following 10 charges:
- Attempted Murder (two counts).
- Burglary.
- Criminal Confinement.
- Theft.
- Intimidation (two counts).
- Resisting Law Enforcement.
- Strangulation.
- Battery Resulting in Bodily Injury.
Court documents say Garcia-Lopez was having dinner, drinking and smoking cigars with a woman and her landlord on the evening of May 8, in the guest house located on a property in the 6300 block of North Washington Boulevard, near East 63rd Street and Meridian streets.
The woman told investigators Garcia-Lopez was a friend from work who had stayed at her house the night before and stayed at her house while she was working that day.
The landlord told investigators in a follow-up statement he had asked Garcia-Lopez and the woman about "getting together sexually" and stepped outside so they two could speak privately about his proposal. During the private conversation, Garcia-Lopez became angry. The landlord said he overheard Garcia-Lopez yelling and called the woman "a wh***." The landlord said he intervened to protect the woman, and convinced Garcia-Lopez to return with him to the main house to grab alcohol to bring back to the guest house.
Once inside the main house, Garcia-Lopez became aggressive towards the landlord. Court documents said Garcia-Lopez choked the landlord from behind until he was unconscious. The landlord told investigators he believes he was unconscious for five to 10 minutes. He said his phone was gone when he woke up.
The woman said that when Garcia-Lopez had returned to the guest house, he told her the landlord "wasn't getting up." The woman at the time believed Garcia-Lopez murdered the landlord, so she ran, locked herself in the bathroom and called 911. Garcia-Lopez broke into the bathroom where the woman was hiding and began assaulting her, court documents said.
The landlord said he returned to the guest house after he woke up to find Garcia-Lopez pinning the woman down and hitting her while holding a gun. Garcia-Lopez demanded the landlord check the woman's phone to see if she had called police. Garcia-Lopez threatened to kill them and himself. The landlord either did not see the 911 call or lied to Garcia-Lopez, court documents indicated.
The landlord told investigators that he had convinced Garcia-Lopez to leave. On his way out, he took some crystals and and candle he had made for the woman, court documents said. Police arrived as Garcia-Lopez and the landlord were leaving the guest house.
Responding officers said they had met the three at the guest house. They briefly spoke with Garcia-Lopez and the landlord before speaking to the woman separately. She told officers Garcia-Lopez attacked her and took her firearm.
Court documents said while speaking with police, Garcia-Lopez became hostile and tried to return to the main house. Officers tried to stop and detain him when he pulled away, grabbed a gun from his rear waistband and fired eight shots. One bullet struck the officer in the right arm, three bullets struck the windows of the main house and one bullet struck the window of a Jeep parked in the driveway. The officer who was shot returned fire, striking Garcia-Lopez.
Both were taken to a local hospital for treatment. IMPD arrested Garcia-Lopez in the hospital. The officer, whose condition was stable condition at the time of the shooting, was released from the hospital the following day. IMPD is not releasing the identity of the officer who was shot.
The IMPD Critical Incident Response Team is leading the criminal investigation. A separate administrative investigation is being conducted by IMPD Internal Affairs.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Kyle Hoover at the IMPD Homicide Office at 317-327-3475, or Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at 317-262-TIPS (8477) to remain anonymous.
