LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — A 12-person jury will decide Wednesday if the man accused of killing a Leesburg convenience store clerk in May 2024 is guilty – and should face life in prison.
Attorneys moved at lightning speed through the trial of Alex Lopez, who was arrested after a 27-day manhunt following the shooting.
Lopez is accused of entering the store as the clerk was Facetiming his wife and immediately opening fire on 51-year-old Raied Shihadeh.
The gunman then moved around the counter and shot Shihadeh while standing over him, as seen on video of the shooting released as detectives searched for clues.
Eventually, two people – including Lopez’s cousin – called in tips identifying Lopez as the shooter.
The cousin testified in court Tuesday that he was not super close to Lopez’s wing of the family, but recognized his cousin by his hair and nose.
Detectives said he also gave them information about Lopez’s car, which matched a car seen driving through the convenience store’s parking lot around the time of the shooting with its lights off.
The car had a GPS tracker, which eventually helped detectives find Lopez at a Kissimmee motel, along with clothing they said he wore during the shooting.
Lopez is not testifying in his own defense and his attorneys have not put up much of a fight, offering no witnesses and only lightly questioning prosecutors’ witnesses about the fact they weren’t in the store when the shooting happened.
Barring any unforeseen hurdles, the jury was expected to begin deliberations around lunchtime Wednesday.
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