Man Sentenced For Fatal Shooting Near Oceanside's Libby Lake Park

OCEANSIDE, CA — A man who fatally shot another man last fall near Oceanside's Libby Lake Park was sentenced Thursday to 21 years in state prison.

Stuart Lopez, 30, pleaded guilty last month to a voluntary manslaughter charge and firearm use allegation in the Nov. 21 death of David Orozco, 24.

Orozco's body was found along Calle Montecito about 3 a.m. Lopez was arrested three days later.

Deputy District Attorney Helen Kim said the killing was motivated by Lopez's belief that Orozco was selling Lopez's younger brother drugs.

Surveillance footage from the scene captured Lopez's fiance's car driving through the area of the shooting, where Orozco was also seen walking, according to Kim. The prosecutor said the vehicle appear to follow Orozco in the footage, then both the victim and vehicle disappear from view. The vehicle is later seen leaving the area at high speed.

A police search of the vehicle turned up gunshot residue inside the car, along with a casing that matched a 9mm gun found on Lopez, Kim said.

– City News Service