Alleged Sexual Relationship Between Man, 57, and Girl, 16, in Burlingame Lands Suspect in Jail

BURLINGAME, CA — A 57-year-old man is accused of being involved in a sexual relationship with a teen girl he met while working at a local grocery store, police announced Tuesday and jail records indicated.

South San Francisco resident Michael Anthony Lopez was arrested Tuesday following an investigation that was launched last month when the girl's mother contacted authorities, according to San Mateo County Sheriff's Det. Salvador Zuno.

"...[T]he victim’s mother notified law enforcement that she believed her daughter was engaged in a sexual relationship with an adult co-worker," Zuno said in a press release.

The woman had first contacted Burlingame police, but investigators with that agency soon learned "...that the lewd and lascivious acts occurred in the Safeway parking lot in Millbrae," according to Zuno. The sheriff's office then took over the case and pieced together the alleged illegal relationship.

"The investigation revealed that during the summer, Lopez befriended the 16-year-old while they both
worked at the Safeway store in Burlingame," Zuno said. "When he was moved to the Millbrae Safeway after
suffering an injury, the victim would meet Lopez in the Safeway parking lot where the lewd and
lascivious behavior would occur in his vehicle."

Police say after they'd gathered enough information and evidence, they arrested Lopez on Tuesday morning at the Burlingame Safeway location.

Lopez was booked into Redwood City's Maguire Correctional Facility on 35 counts of lewd and lascivious acts with a minor, Zuno said. Booking records indicate he's also being held on charges of oral copulation with a minor, sexual penetration with a victim under 18, communicating with a minor for a lewd act and unlawful sexual intercourse. Bail was set at $500,000.

Anyone with information regarding this case is encouraged to call Detective Joe Cang at (650) 259-
2417 or e-mail at; jcang@smcgov.org. Those who wish to remain anonymous, are encouraged to call
the Sheriff’s Anonymous Tip Line at; 1-800-547-2700.

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(Image credit: San Mateo County Sheriff's Office)