Police arrest man on suspicion of murder in child’s death

By NEIL HARTSTEIN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

Santa Barbara police have arrested a Santa Barbara man on suspicion of murder in the death of a 3-year-old child.

“Based upon the investigation into this heinous crime, the suspect was identified as Elvis Alberto Lopez … the boyfriend of the victim’s mother,” police Lt. Kasi

Corbett said.

On Feb. 4 at 1:33 p.m., the Santa Barbara Police Department Combined Communications Center received a 9-1-1 call reporting a medical emergency.

The initial report was that a 3-year-old girl had fallen out of bed injuring herself, police said.

Santa Barbara City Fire and American Medical Response personnel were attending to the child, performing CPR when the police arrived. The child was transported to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, where she was pronounced deceased.

Santa Barbara Police detectives with the assistance of the Santa Barbara County Coroner’s Office investigated the death. Based on the evidence gathered, the case was categorized as a homicide.

On Feb. 11, an arrest warrant