Only On 2: Third Anniversary Nears Of Fatal Shooting Of Cook Allegedly Killed For Not Preparing Food Fast Enough
SHERMAN OAKS (CBSLA.com) — He was a 38-year-old father of five and cook and gunned down nearly three years ago at the Sherman Oaks restaurant where he worked.
In a story that is Only On 2, Peter Daut reports that police are still searching for the killer.
On Thursday evening, he spoke with Raul Lopez' children who are desperate to have the now-cold case solved.
The past three years have ticked by painfully slowly for the five Lopez children. They told Daut they continue to pray for strength, and justice.
"I don't think we can ever get healed, because the pain is always going to be there." said son Melesio Lopez.
The June 29th anniversary of their father's murder nears.
That night in 2012, police say a group of five men got angry with Lopez over how long it took to prepare their food. He worked at Hoagies & Wings on Ventura Boulevard.
The men became disruptive and reportedly began yelling racial slurs.
RELATED STORY: Detectives Hunt Shooter Who Killed Father Of 5 In Sherman Oaks Eatery
Lopez kicked the men out.
Investigators say that's when one of the men fired a semi-automatic handgun killing him. The group took off in a dark-colored SUV.
"If they did it to one family they could do it to another family," says Melesio, "it's frustrating knowing they're still out there and my little brothers and sisters are suffering because their dad is not here."
Melesio was 16 when he lost his father and the family's sole provider.
He says the past three years have been difficult for his mother and four younger siblings -- they often leave notes and awards at a shrine for their dad, in hopes he'll see them from Heaven.
Some of the younger siblings don't fully grasp that dad is gone. "They don't really understand because sometimes they say they want to go with my dad, and we tell them it's not possible, they can't go with him," said Melesio.
A $50,000 reward is being offered to find the killers and police are asking anyone with information to give them a call.