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Florida Man Allegedly Lured His Mom To Basement, Fatally Stabbed And Beat Her With Hammer
Logan Lopez has been charged with murdering his mother, Mary Beth Lopez, and allegedly told police he'd been planning it for a year because she'd "enslaved" him.
A Florida man is behind bars after authorities say he lured his mother to his apartment where he stabbed her to death over the weekend, officials said.
Logan Cameron Lopez, 24, was charged with first-degree murder in the death of mother, Mary Beth Lopez, 53 according to online jail records. He was arrested by Clearwater police Saturday.
Authorities were dispatched to Lopez’s home at the Palms at Countryside Apartments — along U.S. Route 19 North in Clearwater — on July 17, after a neighbor reported hearing a woman screaming for help. Upon arrival, investigators discovered Mary Lopez deceased inside the apartment.
She’d been stabbed multiple times and also beaten with a hammer. Her son, Logan Lopez, allegedly told both responding officers and homicide detectives that he'd killed her.
Detectives believe Mary Lopez’s murder was premeditated, given that Logan Lopez allegedly told law enforcement he’d been planning to kill her for a year.
“The suspect said he had lured his mother to his apartment for the purpose of ‘putting an end to her’ after planning the murder for a year,” the Clearwater Police Department said in a statement.
According to the Tampa Bay Times' reporting, Logan Lopez allegedly asked his mother to bring by some of his mail that had been delivered to her residence. Clearwater police Major Natalia Illich-Hailey said at a press conference that he then invited her in to the apartment to look at his furniture, hit her on the head with a hammer from behind and repeatedly stabbed her.
Illich-Hailey added that Logan Lopez allegedly told detectives his motive was that mother had "enslaved" him.
Police say that Logan Lopez had been taken in February for evaluation under the state Baker Act, which allows for the involuntary committal of people who are a danger to themselves or others, the Times reported. They did not state what the result of the evaluation was.
Officials haven’t released additional information regarding the open homicide investigation. A spokesperson for the Clearwater Police Department wasn’t immediately available for comment when contacted by Oxygen.com on Monday morning.
Lopez doesn’t appear to have a past criminal history. He’s being held without bond at a Pinellas County detention facility, according to online jail records obtained by Oxygen.com.
The 24-year-old appeared in court on July 17, separate court filings show. He pleaded not guilty and was appointed a public defender. No future court dates have been set, prosecutors said.
