Foul play is now suspected in the disappearance of an elderly woman from Miami who vanished three years ago as her son is now facing fraud and theft charges, authorities said.
Eduardo Lopez-Hernandez, 66, was detained on Thursday and charged with organized fraud, theft from the elderly, public assistance fraud, and aggravated abuse of an old or disabled adult, according to Miami-Dade jail records.
According to the police report, Lopez-Hernandez reportedly stole Social Security and Electronic Benefit Transfer benefits from his mother, Edis Lopez Collazo.
The mother has not been seen or heard from since April 6, 2023. She was eighty-four years old when she went missing.
Both shared a home on Northwest 24th Avenue, near Northwest 29th Street, in Allapattah.
Lopez-Hernandez informed authorities that his mother had begun defecating on herself about three months before she went missing, according to the report.
He admitted to not providing his mother with sufficient care or help because he was uncomfortable seeing her naked, according to the report.
According to his arrest report, Lopez-Hernandez admitted to using his mother’s EBT card and Social Security funds to pay for home utilities after she departed.
He also admitted to detectives that he unplugged his mother’s phone line to save money, according to the report.
Throughout their investigation, detectives said Lopez-Hernandez has given inconsistent statements to police and did not attend a planned media event to ask for the public’s assistance in finding his missing mother, citing illness.
According to the arrest request, Lopez-Hernandez told officers he left his mother on the front porch of their home while he went to purchase supper and returned 40 minutes later to discover her missing.
However, when police studied a neighbor’s security video, which had a perfect view of their front porch, it contradicted his sequence of events, revealing that he left the home much earlier and did not return for about 10 hours, according to the request.
His mother was never seen in the video outside of her home or the surrounding region.
Lopez-Hernandez has not been charged in connection with her disappearance. He went before a court on Friday, and his bond was set at $62,500.
“At this time that is still part of the ongoing investigation, detectives did confirm that it does appear to be foul play however we cannot pin it on the son just yet but it is still part of the ongoing investigation,” Delva said. “Even though this has been a significant time since she’s been missing detectives are still very much active in this investigation, our homicide detectives are still actively looking into it and we want to remind the community that please, if you see anyone, if you see something suspicious, or maybe something that’s out of the ordinary, the smallest tip can help detectives solve a case.”
Anyone with information is requested to contact Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS.
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