Officer Adrian Lopez, Sr.

Adrian Lopez, Sr.

Officer Adrian Lopez was shot and killed during a traffic stop on East Fork Road in Whiteriver, Arizona, at about 7:10 pm.

An altercation occurred between Officer Lopez and the driver during which Officer Lopez was fatally shot. The subject then stole Officer Lopez's patrol vehicle and fled the scene with other White Mountain Apache Police in pursuit. The pursuit traveled almost 40 miles before officers and the subject exchanged shots near Hawley Lake, during which another officer was wounded and the subject was killed.

Officer Lopez was a U.S. Army veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He had served with the White Mountain Apache Tribal Police Department for five months and had previously served 10 months with the United States Department of the Interior - Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services in Wind River, Wyoming. He is survived by his wife and two children.