Indiana man sentenced to 91 years in prison for death of man found slain in the woods
A Fort Wayne man convicted of murder in the April shooting death of a man whose body was discovered in a wooded area was sentenced to 91 years in prison Tuesday.
A jury last month also found Anthony J. Lopez, 42, guilty of illegal possession of a firearm in the death of William Jeffrey Kintzel, 63, of South Whitley.
Last month, a jury found 42-year-old Anthony J. Lopez, Jr. guilty of murder in the shooting death of 63-year-old William Kintzel. Tuesday, he found out his fate: 91 years in prison. https://t.co/RCk2UAJvUV
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Allen County Superior Court Judge Fran Gull sentenced Lopez to 65 years for the murder, 20 years for a sentence enhancement for using a gun in the crime and six years for carrying a handgun with a felony conviction within the previous 15 years.
Kintzel was facing an upcoming trial for cocaine possession when his body was discovered April 14. Police believe the slaying occurred days earlier.
Prosecutors said a nearby resident's surveillance camera captured footage of Kintzel driving Lopez and another man near the wooded area, parking, and the man waiting in Kintzel's SUV while the victim and Lopez head into the woods and then Lopez runs out of the woods.
A neighbor told CBS affiliate WANE-TV he heard gunshots and then saw a man come out of the woods with a hooded sweatshirt and face covering. Kintzel was found with his car keys around his neck on a lanyard and his driver's license, the station reported.
Lopez's attorney, Richard Thonert, has said he will appeal the verdicts.
The driver of the SUV was Michael Allen Barker, 42, of Fort Wayne, investigators have said.
Camera surveillance shows that Lopez and Barker went into several stores, and they bought bleach and Clorox wipes, then cleaned the SUV, WANE-TV reported, citing court documents said.
There's a warrant for Barker's arrest charging him with murder and felony robbery resulting in serious bodily injury.