Gonzalo Lopez, a convicted murderer who escaped a prison bus three weeks ago, was fatally shot by police after killing a family of five while on a weekend visit in a cabin. The bodies of the slain family members, including four children and a grandfather, were found in a home in Leon County.
According to Jason Clark with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Lopez fled the home truck, which police later disabled with a spike tip in Jourdanton. The escaped convict then crashed the vehicle and engaged in a firefight with the officers. Authorities said he was armed with AR-15 and a pistol, which they believe were stolen.
The slain family of five
According to Texas Tribune, authorities tracked the killer down on Thursday after someone called, saying that they were worried about a relative who had that they could not contact. When the police checked on the relative at a rural cabin in Leon County, they found the four children and the missing relative.
The police believed that Lopez had killed the family and then took a rifle, handgun, and a family's truck.
The slain children were identified as brothers Waylon, 18; Carson, 16; Hudson,11, and their cousin, Bryan Collins, 11. The older family member and the missing relative was the grandfather, Mark Collins,66.
The family was using the home as a "weekend residence," Clark said.
Authorities are still investigating if Lopez had been hiding in the cabin or if he ambushed the family when they arrived.
According to CNN, the state convict was riding a prison bus headed to a medical facility when he broke out of his restraints. He then cut through the metal and crawled out of the bottom of the cage.
The fugitive then attacked the driver and forced the bus to stop. He tried to drive the bus away, but officers shot the tires. The convicted murderer then stopped the vehicle, left the bus, and ran into the woods on Highway 7 in Leon County. The family's home was within the perimeter where Lopez was last found.Lopez had been the subject of an intensive search since he escaped on May 12.
Tribute to the family members
Four of the five slain family members were Tomball Independent School District students.
The school district Superintendent Martha Salazar-Zamora said that the Tomball community "is continuing to pull together following the tragic loss of four students" at this most difficult time.
.@TomballISD is grieving. This letter shared with me by a teacher (from @m_salazarzamora) says the family members allegedly killed by escaped inmate Gonzalo Lopez included four TISD students and their grandfather. Look for the latest on @KHOU. https://t.co/rjMoCooNXH #khou11 pic.twitter.com/fIK9j75N9S
— Jason Miles (@JMilesKHOU) June 3, 2022
According to CBS News, a letter sent to the district community said the loss of a student is heartbreaking, but to lose four students in "such a tragic way is excruciating." The district has arranged grief counseling for students who need it.
On Friday, family pastor Steve Bezner said that the family was "close-knit and of deep faith."
