Suspect arrested for death of man in Livingston, police say
LIVINGSTON, Calif. (KFSN) -- A suspect has been arrested after a man was killed in the small community of Livingston late last month.
On Monday, police arrested 32-year-old Samuel Lopez for the homicide of Rudy Padilla.
On February 27th, investigators say the Modesto man reported he and the victim had been jumped by gang members.
When officers arrived at the area of Olds and Harvest avenues, Lopez was gone and Padilla had died.
His cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head.
Investigators later tracked down and interviewed Lopez.
Detectives spent weeks collecting evidence before arresting Lopez on Monday.
Investigators are still determining the motive.
"No specific motive, they were by all accounts friends. So, some sort of falling out or argument. We don't know that at this point," said Livingston Police Chief Frederick Schiff.
Lopez has been booked into the Merced County jail on homicide charges.
He's being held on a $1 million bond.
