A 37-year-old man has been was arrested for the attempted murder
of Hollister resident Michael Reese.
Gabriel Lopez, who was arrested Friday at a Valley View Road
home, is in custody at the Santa Clara County Jail in San Jose
where he was charged with attempted murder and possession of
methamphetamines and drug paraphernalia.
A 37-year-old man has been was arrested for the attempted murder of Hollister resident Michael Reese.
Gabriel Lopez, who was arrested Friday at a Valley View Road home, is in custody at the Santa Clara County Jail in San Jose where he was charged with attempted murder and possession of methamphetamines and drug paraphernalia.
Lopez allegedly stabbed Reese in the throat Wednesday near The Garlic Farm at Bolsa Road and Monterey Street in Gilroy.
Police said Reese told them Lopez stabbed him and by 5 p.m., Gilroy and Hollister police located Lopez at a residence at 1991 Valleyview Drive, where he was arrested without incident.
During the arrest, Gilroy Police investigators recovered a folding pocket knife in Lopez’s possession. It is being held as potential evidence in the case that sent K-9 units and police armed with automatic rifles on a manhunt Wednesday afternoon through a densely populated rest stop and residential area on south Monterey Road in Gilroy.
“A lot of times when someone is arrested things found on the suspect are secured as potential evidence,” Gilroy Police Capt. Debbie Moore said. “I don’t know if the weapon has any relevance to this case.”
Lopez made a statement to investigators that he had been with Reese in Gilroy on the day of the stabbing. Lopez said he was under the influence of prescription drugs and methamphetamines on the date of the incident. He did not confess to the stabbing.
“It sounds to me like his defense is going to be that he doesn’t know what happened or can’t remember anything,” GPD Sgt. Jack Robinson said.
Lopez’s arraignment is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Wednesday in San Martin.
The victim’s injuries hampered the investigation because Reese was unable to communicate for two days. He had difficulty speaking and was incoherent from the surgery and medication used in his treatment, police said.
Reese went into emergency surgery at San Jose Medical Center Wednesday and is likely to recover from the stab wounds, one of which missed his jugular vein by less than an inch, said a paramedic on the scene.
Before being airlifted to San Jose, a bloodied Reese was aided by witnesses and paramedics at the Chevron gas station on the corner of Monterey Road and U.S. 101.
Police said the two men apparently work together in Hollister for a company that installs and tears down tents for large events. Police were unable to confirm the name of the Hollister-based company Monday because their lead investigator was off-duty. They were also unable to confirm whether Lopez had a criminal past or was involved with gang activity.
“It sounded to me like the two were on a job together when the incident happened,” said Det. John Marfia, the GPD’s original investigator.
Acting on witness accounts that the stabbing suspect fled on foot to the nearby Garlic Farm RV Park, police searched several RVs, all occupied rooms at the Garlic Farm Inn, local public rest rooms and a nearby field blanketed in shoulder-high grass for more than two hours.
