On the night of January 14, 2017, in Fort Smith, Arkansas, 18-year-old Justin Michael Lopez, a male and father to a nine-month-old baby, was fatally shot. The incident occurred at approximately 10:30 p.m. in a camper parked behind a residence in the 2300 block of North Ninth Street. Lopez was inside the camper with his friend, 20-year-old Trey Miller, when they heard noises outside. After Lopez briefly stepped out and saw several individuals, he went back inside.
Immediately after, more than 30 rounds were fired into the camper from assault rifles. Miller managed to find cover in the bathroom and was unharmed, but Lopez was struck by the gunfire and died at the scene.
The subsequent investigation by the Fort Smith Police Department quickly led to the identification and arrest of five suspects. The individuals taken into custody were 19-year-old Bryan Porras, 19-year-old Ryan Oxford, 18-year-old Alberto Chavez, and a 16-year-old male, Jorge Chirinos. Porras's 18-year-old girlfriend, Mariah Crocker, was also arrested. Authorities determined the shooting was gang-related, stemming from a feud involving a gang known as 'Slanga96'. According to police reports, the suspects had a list of people who had allegedly 'disrespected the gang,' and Lopez's name was on that list.
During their investigation, police recovered two assault rifles believed to have been used in the shooting; an AK-47 was found at Oxford's residence and an AR-15 at the apartment of Porras and Crocker. A search of the apartment also uncovered drugs and other weapons. The four male suspects faced charges including first-degree murder and committing a terroristic act, with Chirinos being charged as an adult. Crocker faced felony charges for possession of morphine, drug paraphernalia, and a defaced firearm. In the ensuing legal proceedings, Bryan Porras was sentenced to 118 years in prison for his role in the murder of Justin Lopez. The other individuals involved also faced serious charges for their parts in the deadly shooting.
