AUSTIN – Jose Mario Lopez, 59, a Texas 10 Most Wanted Sex Offender, is now in custody after being captured Monday in Winter Haven, Fla. Lopez was wanted for parole violation and failure to register as a sex offender. The arrest was not the result of tip information received through Texas Crime Stoppers, and no reward will be paid.
Winter Haven Police Department officers took Lopez into custody without incident at a park in central Winter Haven.
In January 2017, Lopez knowingly and intentionally cut off his ankle monitor and absconded from a Houston facility, and remained at large until his capture. In 1983, Lopez was convicted in San Patricio County of burglary of habitation with the intent to commit a sex offense. He subsequently received a 70-year prison sentence, and was released on parole in 2015 and required to register as a sex offender for life. For more information, see his captured bulletin.
So far in 2017, DPS and other agencies have arrested six Texas 10 Most Wanted Fugitives and Sex Offenders, including three sex offenders and four gang members, and $22,500 in rewards have been paid for tips that resulted in arrests.
To be eligible for the cash rewards, tipsters MUST provide information to authorities using one of the three following methods:
- Call the Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-252-TIPS (8477).
- Submit a web tip through the DPS website by selecting the fugitive you have information about, and then clicking on the link under their picture.
- Submit a Facebook tip by clicking the "SUBMIT A TIP" link (under the "About" section).
All tips are anonymous – regardless of how they are submitted – and tipsters will be provided a tip number instead of using a name.
DPS investigators work with local law enforcement agencies to select fugitives for the Texas 10 Most Wanted Fugitive and Sex Offender lists. You can find the current lists – with photos – on the DPS website.
Do not attempt to apprehend these fugitives; they are considered armed and dangerous.
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