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Alex Lopez Convicted in Leesburg Clerk’s Killing, Sentenced to Life Without Parole

The case turned on evidence from a FaceTime call alongside surveillance footage of a close‑range shooting during a low‑cash robbery.

Overview

  • A Lake County jury found Lopez, 26, guilty of first-degree murder and robbery with a firearm in the 2024 killing of Raied “Ray” Shihadeh.
  • Judge Brian Welke imposed a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
  • Investigators said video captured the assailant shooting the clerk, then jumping the counter to take about $100 and a vape product before fleeing.
  • Shihadeh’s widow testified she was on FaceTime with him when the attack occurred and called 911 after he stopped responding.
  • Prosecutors had dropped a concealed-weapon charge and declined to seek the death penalty as the defense argued Lopez was not the man in the video; he was arrested weeks later at a Kissimmee motel.