Santa Rosa man suspected of decapitating relative, fleeing with head arrested
SANTA ROSA -- A Santa Rosa man who was wanted by police for allegedly decapitating a woman at her home Thursday, was taken into custody in San Francisco on Friday.
Police identified the suspect as 24-year-old Santa Rosa resident Luis Gustavo Aroyo-Lopez. At the time of his arrest, he was allegedly on Postrelease Community Supervision (PRCS) after being recently released from state prison for assault with a deadly weapon and weapons possession.
UPDATE: Santa Rosa police recover head of woman allegedly decapitated by her grandson
There has not been any information provided about whether the victim's head was discovered when he was apprehended.
The investigation into the killing began on Thursday around 3:40 p.m. Officers were sent to the 2500 block of Pomo Trail, just south of W. Steele Lane and west of Coffey Lane, for reports of a possible homicide. When they arrived, they found a decapitated woman inside the home.
According to police, her head was missing and they believed the suspect may have still been in possession of it.
A neighbor told KPIX she saw the suspect walking toward her neighbor's home around noon on Thursday.
"He just walked, a normal pace, and made an exact turn up the walkway and knocked on the door. I paused over here with my dog just to make sure my neighbor knew who he was," she said.
She said she overheard the two talking but nothing about the conversation alarmed her.
"She was surprised and happy and I heard the word 'you.' They were just, you know, talking and then the door closed and I thought 'Phew! She knows the guy.'"
Three hours later, she said she heard a friend of the victim, run out of the home.
"She kept yelling 'No head!' and I wasn't sure what she meant."
Neighbors say Lopez is the victim's grandson but that has not been confirmed.
Santa Rosa police said more details following his arrest would be made available later.
KPIX correspondent Andrea Nakano and Bay City News contributed to this report
