A Federal Way man was sentenced to prison for a 2024 incident where he kidnapped a woman from Auburn because her husband did not deliver $2,500 worth of cocaine to the man.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), on Jan. 14, a federal judge sentenced Daniel Lopez, 25, of Federal Way, to eight years in prison for using a firearm in a crime of violence. This charge stems from an Oct. 13, 2024, incident where Lopez abducted a woman from her home in Auburn, and she was later found in Guatemala.
According to the DOJ, the woman’s husband and a male victim, who was also kidnapped, took $2,500 from Lopez for cocaine, but the cocaine was never delivered. Two witnesses reported seeing the woman leaving with two men, one of whom was carrying a firearm and was later identified as Lopez.
Lopez was identified because his vehicle was captured on video in the parking lot, and traffic cameras showed the license plate belonged to Lopez.
According to the DOJ, the investigation revealed that the victims were held in the Seattle area for two days before being transported to the southern border with Mexico. Lopez then had his associates drive the woman and the male victim to the border and forced them to walk across.
According to the DOJ, the woman and the male victim were identified by immigration authorities in Mexico and were transported to Guatemala. Neither had legal status in the U.S., and so have been barred from returning to their lives in the U.S., the DOJ reported. DOJ documents state that Lopez’s crime amounted to a forced deportation of the two victims.
Lopez was then found in Houston, Texas, and arrested on Oct. 19, 2024, at a hotel.
According to court documents, before the woman’s kidnapping, Lopez found the male victim who took money from him for the cocaine alongside the woman’s husband, beat him up and then forced him to take him to the woman’s home. Additionally, when the victims were held in the Seattle area for two days before being transported to the southern border, documents state, Lopez’s associates forced the male victim to ingest fentanyl to the point they were concerned he might overdose.
“This defendant has a lengthy and serious criminal history with many of the offenses involving firearms,” U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd said. “Mr. Lopez has been involved in street gangs since his mid-teens and has committed several violent offenses, including robbery, drive-by shooting and illegal possession of guns and drugs. This eight-year prison sentence is focused on protecting the community.”
According to documents, Lopez was initially charged with kidnapping, which had a minimum mandatory sentence of 151 months (about 12 and a half years). However, following a guilty plea, Lopez’s charge was amended to using a firearm during a crime of violence, which has a minimum mandatory sentence of 84 months (seven years).
According to the DOJ, this case was investigated by the Auburn Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
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