Suspect arrested for allegedly shooting a man after the accident

ALBUQUERQUE, NM — Police have arrested a suspect accused of shooting a person in the back after a crash Tuesday in northeast Albuquerque.

Albuquerque police officers responded around 11:20 a.m. Tuesday to reports of a crash and shooting in the area of ​​Comanche Road, just west of Eubank Boulevard. They found a man with a gunshot wound, which medics took to the hospital.

At the hospital, the man told police that a woman, who was in the truck he said shot into the back of his vehicle, shot him. He said she pulled out a gun after noticing he was recording her and the person she was with. He then said he grabbed the gun, removed the magazine and left before hearing two gunshots.

Witnesses told police the man aggressively approached the woman, telling them they couldn’t leave.

Investigators said the woman, identified as Heather Lopez, turned herself in after a family member recognized the truck in a news report and connected it to her.

Lopez told investigators she was riding in the truck with her friends at the time of the crash. She allegedly said the driver and another friend fled while she and her other friend stayed.

In her interview, Lopez said similar things on the witness stand, but explained that she had warned the man about her gun “several times” and that she would use it if he continued to approach her. Then, when he got the gun, investigators said she allegedly pulled out a second gun and shot him “out of fear” as he confronted her.

However, investigators found that the shots struck him in the back, corroborating the man’s story that he removed the magazine and left.

Lopez faces charges of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and robbery with a deadly weapon.

MORE: Police are investigating the crash that is believed to be related to the shootings in northeast Albuquerque