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July 24, 2009 - For immediate release:

State Police, New Bedford Police Capture Florida Homicide Suspect

Acting on information provided by Florida sheriff’s deputies, Massachusetts State Police and New Bedford Police this morning found and arrested a suspect in the 2008 murder of a man found in the trunk of a burned car in Hardee County, Fla.

Eight state troopers and two city officers found DAN ENRIGUEZ LOPEZ, 31, in a bedroom in a second floor apartment at 33 Holly St., New Bedford. LOPEZ was charged with being a fugitive from justice, as well as with a warrant for first-degree murder, kidnapping and arson.

Florida authorities on Monday notified Massachusetts State Police that they had obtained a warrant charging LOPEZ with the murder and that they believed he had fled to New Bedford. A subsequent investigation by the Massachusetts State Police Violent Fugitive Apprehension Section led to the Holly Street address.

LOPEZ is wanted for the homicide of 46-year-old Dwight Clyde Williams. Williams was found Nov. 26, 2008 in the trunk of a burned Lincoln Continental on Old Town Creek Road in Hardee County, Fla. A citizen of Jamaica, Williams had been living in Highlands County, Fla., at the time. The investigation by the sheriffs’ offices in Hardee County and Highlands County, and the Florida Fire Marshal’s Office, led to the identification of LOPEZ as a suspect.

Massachusetts State Troopers from the Violent Fugitive Apprehension Section, Special Tactical Operations Team and Bristol County State Police Detective Unit, as well as two New Bedford Police detectives, made this morning’s arrest. State Police and the Bristol County District Attorney's Office will work with Florida authorities to arrange LOPEZ's rendition to Florida. For more information on the homicide itself, media should contact the Highlands County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office.