Kevin Isaza
A third suspect has been taken into custody and charged with murder involving the partially-burned body that was discovered Jan. 10, at the dead end of Ellis Road in Whitfield County.
The suspect was identified as Kevin Isaza, 24, of Antioch, Tn. Isaza was located and arrested by agents from the US Marshall’s Office in Sacramento, Calif. Investigators believe he fled to California shortly after the burned body was identified. Officers from the Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office recently traveled to California and transported Isaza back to Dalton, where he was charged with murder.
Evidence indicated the burned body had been at the location less than 24 hours before it was discovered by a 13 year-old boy who lived in the area. The body was later identified as Luis Antonio Lopez, 26, of the Nashville area.
Investigators with the Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office and agents with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation have made several trips to the Nashville and Murfreesboro area to conduct interviews and collect evidence. On Feb. 16, evidence was presented to a Whitfield County magistrate judge and murder warrants were issued on the two other suspects. The United States Marshal’s Service was notified of the murder warrants and they started searching for the suspects. The marshals were able to locate both suspects and take them into custody.
Roberto Viera Aybar, aka, “Chico”, 23, of Antioch, Tn., was taken into custody and detained at the Murfreesboro Jail. He was brought back to Whitfield County on Feb. 27, on the murder charge. Hector Ruiz, 29, of the Nashville area, was taken into custody and is also being held in the Whitfield County Jail.
The investigation is continuing.