Fugitive arrested leaving city hall faces drug charge

GRAND RAPIDS – A man arrested as he left Lansing City Hall last week was a fugitive facing a federal drug conspiracy charge, officials said.

Eric Lopez, 40, of Lansing, was one of five men indicted in connection with a drug conspiracy involving at least five kilos of cocaine and at least 100 kilos of marijuana, court documents say. He was indicted in April.

Lopez was arrested Sept. 9 by the FBI as he walked out of City Hall, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Grand Rapids.

His wife, 39-year-old Christina Lopez, also was arrested. She is charged with making false statements to the FBI and with being an accessory to her husband's drug charge by helping him avoid arrest.

Eric Lopez is being held without bond. Christina Lopez has been released on bond.

Three of the five men indicted have pleaded guilty to drug charges.

Last month, Rudy Gelista, described in court documents as a mid-level cocaine and marijuana dealer in the Lansing area, was sentenced to 57 months in prison and four years of supervised release. Gelista's accused supplier, 43-year-old Jose G. Alvarez, who court documents say didn't cooperate with law enforcement, was sentenced to 121 months in prison and five years of supervised release. A third man who pleaded guilty will be sentenced in December.

The investigation was led by the FBI and the Tri-County Metro Narcotics Squad.