Son of Camas killing suspect pleads not guilty

Police say teen misled them after Luz Guitron-Lopez’s slaying on March 18

By Dawn Feldhaus
July 19, 2018 5:30 am
News, News

Luz Guitron-Lopez (left) is pictured here with her three school-aged children. Guitron-Lopez, 35, a well-known cook, was found dead in her Camas home on March 18. (Contributed photo courtesy of Guitron-Lopez family)

The teenage son of the suspect in the murder of 35-year-old Luz Guitron-Lopez, a Camas mother of three found dead in her home in March, has been charged with first-degree rendering criminal assistance.

Police say Andrew Javier Juarez-Hunt, 19, of McMinnville, Oregon, misled them after Guitron-Lopez’s murder, and was trying to help his father, Guillermo Juarez, Guitron-Lopez’s former boyfriend and the main suspect in her murder, escape.

Juarez-Hunt entered a plea of not guilty during his arraignment in Clark County Superior Court on July 12. His trial is currently scheduled for Oct. 8.

Juarez, whom police have named as the main suspect in the March 18 slaying of Guitron-Lopez, remains at large.

Camas police arrived at Guitron-Lopez’s residence in the 2100 block of Northeast Everett Street around 1:30 p.m. on March 18. Guitron-Lopez, a mother of three school-aged children known for her culinary skills and cheerful presence at the Camas Farmers Market and annual Hometown Holidays celebration, had been killed in her own home, her body discovered by her 11-year-old son.

A Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office report later showed Guitron-Lopez had died from “multiple sharp force injuries.”

According to arraignment documents, Juarez-Hunt spoke to Camas police officers around 4:30 p.m. that day, telling them he and his father had worked together earlier, and that Juarez had left the job site, returning a short time later. The 6-year-old son of Juarez and Guitron-Lopez was with Juarez when he returned to work, and, according to arraignment documents, Juarez told his older son that “something bad happened,” and they had to leave.

Initially, Juarez-Hunt told investigators his father used his cell phone briefly and then smashed it before they traveled to Hood River, Oregon, where Juarez got into another vehicle. Juarez-Hunt told police Juarez used a flip-style phone he had not seen before and was overheard telling someone he may be headed to Idaho.

Investigators went with Juarez-Hunt to the job site with the hope of finding the smashed cell phone, but were not able to locate it. Police also said they found no surveillance video showing Juarez-Hunt or his father in Hood River.

On March 20, Juarez-Hunt allegedly admitted he had lied to investigators. According to the declaration of probable cause, Juarez-Hunt said he traveled with his father to Woodburn, Oregon, and never went to Hood River. He also, according to police, told investigators he and his father had stopped at a shopping center in Woodburn, and purchased clothes for Juarez. Juarez-Hunt allegedly said the clothes his father had been wearing were dirty, and there was blood on the pants.

Police say data from Juarez-Hunt’s cell phone shows it was in use before and after Guitron’s murder was believed to have been committed, and was still being used for days after that, not smashed and left at the job site as Juarez-Hunt had initially told police.

“Andrew told me he lied to investigators to try and help Guillermo hide (from) authorities because, ‘he’s (my) dad,'” Camas Police Officer Scot Boyles wrote in the declaration of probable cause. “Andrew claimed he only knew ‘something bad’ happened and wasn’t aware that Luz had been killed until he arrived at the Camas Police Department and her family told him what happened.”

Juarez-Hunt posted $10,000 in bail and is on supervised release.

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