Suspect who fled Florida Keys felony trial to Mexico back in Monroe County jail

Crime admin October 12, 2026 0 Comments

Suspect who fled Florida Keys felony trial to Mexico back in Monroe County jail

A fugitive who decided to skip the last day of his attempted murder trial in the Florida Keys earlier this month is back in Monroe County jail Monday after he was caught in Mexico last week, the sheriff’s office said.

Armando Lopez, 53, told his father, who he was staying with during his trial, that he was pretty sure the jury would find him guilty on charges of beating a deputy, stealing his patrol car and then carjacking a woman’s SUV, so he was leaving the country.

He was right. The jury took less than an hour on Oct. 2 to find him guilty, and some of his charges come with a life sentence. But, he wasn’t there to hear the verdict. Attorneys waited around that morning at the Plantation Key courthouse, but he didn’t show. His father told his public defender there was no reason to wait around. Lopez was free on a $460,000 bond at the time.

When it was clear he was gone, Judge James Morgan issued a no-bond warrant for his arrest.

Detectives found out Lopez rented a car in Key Largo and drove out of town, Sheriff Rick Ramsay said. That car was flagged by a license plate reader in Texas.

A second license plate reader pinged the car entering Mexico at the Laredo border crossing, Ramsay said.

The sheriff’s office called the U.S. Marshals Service, whose agents located Lopez in Mexico last week. Ramsay told the Miami Herald that Lopez was back in county jail Monday afternoon and provided photos of him being processed in cuffs and shackles.

Lopez’s charges, including attempted murder, aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, domestic battery, grand theft auto, fleeing and eluding police and burglary, stem from a violent and chaotic Dec. 21, 2024, incident.

Sgt. James Hager arrived at Lopez’s Palm Drive home in Key Largo to stop him from beating his on-and-off-again girlfriend, according to Lopez’s arrest report.

But, Lopez went from attacking the woman to battering Hager. As the two men fought in the front yard, Lopez tried to take Hager’s gun from his holster, according to his arrest report. The attack was recorded on Hager’s body camera, and the footage was shown in court during his four-day trial.

Lopez then got into Hager’s patrol car and drove out to U.S. 1. From there, he abandoned the cruiser, focusing on a Kia SUV.

He forced a woman out of that car and headed north on U.S. 1, with deputies and Florida Highway Patrol troopers pursuing, according to the arrest report.

The chase ended when he crashed into the back of a Volkswagen about two miles up the highway at mile marker 104 and lost control of the Kia, detectives said.