A 48-year-old convicted gang member was charged Friday with the fatal shooting of a man in Santa Ana in June.
Jerry Lopez was charged with murder and possession of a gun by a felon with a sentencing enhancement for discharge of a gun causing death.
Lopez is accused of killing 23-year-old Christopher Michael Abarca of Santa Ana just before 7:50 a.m. June 14 in the 1100 block of South Townsend Street, according to Santa Ana police Officer Natalie Garcia.
Police responding to a shooting found Abarca in the driver’s seat of a car, Garcia said. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
When police served a search warrant of Lopez’s residence on Wednesday near McFadden Avenue and Clara Street, the suspect refused to come out but later surrendered, after hours of negotiations, Garcia said. Police seized multiple guns found in the home.
Lopez was charged with attempted grand theft on Feb. 3, 2023, and drunken driving and possessing drug paraphernalia on April 18, 2021, according to court records.
Lopez pleaded guilty in October 2010 to possession of a gun by a felon, possessing a controlled substance while armed, both felonies, and misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance. He also admitted sentencing enhancements for gang activity.
Lopez and Abarca were not acquainted, Garcia said.