Man charged in fatal 'ambush-style attack' on 2 retirees in southwest Houston park

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- On Monday, Houston police arrested a man accused of killing two retirees in a southwest Houston park last week.

Court records show Charles Ernest Lopez, 24, is charged with capital murder in the shooting deaths of 67-year-old Natanael Fuentes Reyes and 74-year-old Guadalupe Flores. The victims' families told ABC13 Reyes and Flores were longtime friends, grandparents, and neighbors.

According to police, the two men were shot to death at a walking trail in Wildheather Park just before 6 a.m. last Friday, June 27.

Court records state that shell casings found at the scene were run through a national ballistics database. The casings matched two other cases in Brazoria County and in Houston, court records state.

Investigators say that the car matched the car believed to have been used in the murders, for which Lopez was the registered car's owner.

According to Lopez' financial affidavit, Lopez has two young children.

SEE ORIGINAL REPORT: 2 neighbors fatally shot several times from behind while taking a walk at SW Houston park, HPD says

Police said Fuentes Reyes and Flores walked the trail daily.

"Most of the gunshots were from behind, and then after they fell, whoever the suspects were stood over them and fired multiple rounds into their bodies from above," Houston police Sgt. Arrington said.

The magistrate said the witness reported that Lopez left the park in a white sedan. Police reportedly tracked the vehicle down and stopped Lopez as he drove it Monday afternoon.

"He then was interviewed by police and he gave a confession to the incident," the magistrate said.