*** MEDIA ADVISORY***
DECEMBER 17, 2012
MOTHER AND SON REUNITED AT IDOC
Media Contact: Curtis T. Hill, Jr. 296-1888
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An Elkhart Superior Court 3 jury deliberated several hours on Thursday, July 26th, 2012, before returning a verdict of guilty convicting Anita Lopez, 63, Goshen, of one (1) count of Dealing in Cocaine, as a Class A Felony. The conviction resulted after the jury heard evidence from an investigation into Lopezs son, Valfredo Freddy Lopez, by members of the Elkhart County Interdiction and Covert Enforcement Unit (ICE) and the Goshen Police Department (GPD). The investigation by the ICE Unit resulted in three (3) separate purchases of cocaine from Freddy and the execution of a search warrant into the Lopezs resident at 209 S. 9th Street, Goshen, Indiana on the 18th day of October, 2007.
During trial, jurors heard from officers assigned to GPDs Emergency Response Team who made the initial entry into the Lopez residence. Once inside, GPD officers located Anita Lopez hiding her son, Freddy, in a trap door built into the floor of her utility closet. Furthermore, jurors were presented with items found in the Lopez residence which included over $10,000.00 and approximately ½ an ounce of cocaine, almost all of which was found in Anitas bedroom. Anita Lopezs attorney argued at trial that the person responsible for the cocaine was her son, Freddy. However, the jury, after hearing the evidence which included learning that Anita Lopezs home was barricaded to frustrate police entry and equipped with a remote television security system, discounted her proffered defense.
Sentencing was originally scheduled for August 16, 2012, but was continued several times by the court. Judge Biddlecome sentenced Anita Lopez on Thursday, December 13, 2012, to thirty (30) years at the Indiana Department of Correction (IDOC) where she will be reunited with her son, Freddy, who is currently serving a thirty (30) year sentence after pleading guilty to his part in the Lopezs family business.
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Under Indiana law, all persons arrested for a criminal offense are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
