WORCESTER—A Worcester County Superior Court jury Thursday found a city man guilty of second-degree murder in the 2020 shooting death of 24-year-old Joshua Lopez.
Leroy L. Thompson Jr., 30, was also convicted of reckless endangerment of a child, according to Worcester County District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr.
Lopez was shot while sitting in the backseat of a vehicle on Almont Avenue in the early morning hours of July 5, 2020. A minor child was also in the car at the time. Lopez died the next day, July 6, 2020.
“I want to thank the Worcester Police Department, Assistant District Attorneys Timothy Westerman and George Somi, and Victim Witness Advocate Margaret Rwaramba, for an excellent job on this case,” Early said in the announcement. “I also want to thank the jury for their work in reaching this verdict.”
Worcester Police Chief Paul Saucier also expressed appreciation for the jury’s decision and his department’s collaboration with prosecutors. “I want to thank the men and women of the Worcester Police Department for their steadfast commitment to all victims in order to get closure for their families,” Saucier said in the release. “The WPD also values our partnership with District Attorney Joseph Early Jr and his staff of talented prosecutors whom also demand closure for the loved ones of heinous crime victims.”
Thompson is scheduled to be sentenced by Worcester Superior Court Judge Valerie Yarashus on Sept. 24, 2025.
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