Second Suspect Arrested In Slaying Of Oakland Ice Cream Vendor
OAKLAND (CBS SF) -- New information has led to murder charges being filed against a second suspect in the fatal shooting of an ice cream vendor in East Oakland two years ago.
Marty Lopez, 42, was arrested and charged last week for the shooting of 45-year-old Jasvir Singh, 45, in the 9300 block of Peach Street at about 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 3, 2015.
Singh, who had sold ice cream in that area for many years, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Lopez, who's also charged with being an ex-felon in possession of a firearm, briefly appeared in Alameda County Superior Court Thursday but delayed entering a plea until Nov. 9.
The filing of charges against Marty Lopez comes just as the first suspect in the case, 25-year-old Joevan Lopez, who's not related, is set to stand trial for Singh's death.
Jury selection for Joevan Lopez's case was finalized this week and the attorneys in his case will present their opening statements on Monday.
Court officials said the filing of charges against Marty Lopez won't affect the schedule for Joevan Lopez's trial because their cases will go forward on separate tracks.
When Joevan Lopez was arrested in November 2015, former Oakland police Chief Sean Whent said at a news conference that was attended by Mayor Libby Schaaf and FBI and U.S. Marshals Service officials that the fatal shooting of Singh was "a senseless murder."
Capt. Roland Holmgren said Singh "was part of the community and people were heartbroken" when he was fatally shot.
When Joevan Lopez was arrested and charged two years ago, Oakland police Officer Jason Andersen wrote in a probable cause statement that several witnesses told investigators that the person responsible for the shooting was "J-Baby" and officers identified "J-Baby" as Lopez.
Andersen said witnesses who were shown double-blind sequential photo lineups subsequently identified Lopez as the shooter.
But Alameda County District Attorney Inspector James Morris wrote in a cause statement that while he was helping his office prepare for Joevan Lopez's trial, he located a witness "who stated that she saw Marty Lopez and Joevan Lopez shoot into a van that was occupied by Singh."
Morris said, "The witness said both Marty and Joevan were armed and the motive was robbery."