A now-former deputy who allegedly allowed a group of inmates to brutally attack a fellow prisoner now faces new criminal charges.
SAN ANTONIO — Former Bexar County Deputy Clemente Lopez Jr. is facing new charges after he was arrested earlier this month for allegedly allowing a group to assault a jail inmate before he died.
On May 2, Lopez was taken into custody after officials said he admitted to leaving a jail inmate’s cell door open so a group could “violently assault” him. According to an arrest affidavit, the 20-year-old “was observing the entire assault” from outside the cell.
When the now-former deputy spoke with investigators, records say, he admitted to opening the cell door before telling the inmates: “Don’t make it bad.” Records say they went on to kick and smash 46-year-old Francisco Bazan’s head on the concrete.”
The attack stemmed from an unpaid $40 debt, the affidavit says. Lopez was charged with murder, as were several other inmates suspected of participating in the assault. The Texas Rangers investigated the incident and interviewed Bazan’s cellmate, Rudy Bueno; records say he denied his involvement in the assault before another inmate told investigators Bueno and four others participated.
The medical examiner ruled Bazan’s death a homicide due to the blunt force injuries he sustained in the May 28 attack.
Lopez was booked into the Bexar County Jail on a $500,000 bond, but posted it and was released less than a week later. Officials say the former deputy is facing a new felony charge of engaging in organized criminal activity, though it’s unclear if it’s related to Bazan’s murder.
The new charge is punishable by up to life in prison if Lopez is convicted.