Man sentenced to 15 years for murder plea

Second suspect still sought

EPHRATA - A Royal City man will be deported to Mexico after he serves 15 years in prison for his role in killing a co-worker last year.

Another man is still wanted in connection with the killing, the Grant County Prosecutor's Office said Monday.

Felix Cortez Lopez, 20, was sentenced last week in a plea agreement that reduced his charge from first-degree murder to second-degree murder.

His co-worker, Valerio Lopez Hernandez, 22, of Royal City, was found dead in September lying on his back in the sagebrush near Frenchman Hills Road close to a blood-splattered van.

Hernandez died of head injuries after being beaten.

Cortez-Lopez reportedly told detectives he felt he was protecting his girlfriend from Hernandez's unwanted advances, said Ed Owens of the prosecutor's office.

Cortez Lopez will be deported after he serves his sentence because he wasn't in the country legally, Prosecutor John Knodell confirmed.

Lopez's brother, Margarito Torres-Lopez, 28, is still wanted in the case on a first-degree murder warrant, Owens said.

Torres-Lopez is described as 5 feet 4 inches tall, 150 pounds with black hair and brown eyes, according to his wanted poster.

It was believed in September there was nothing to stop him from returning to his home country of Mexico.

A material witness in the case, Luz Manuel Flores Ramirez, 26, of Royal City, was released from custody, Owens said. Ramirez was not believed to be involved in the killing.

The three men worked in different orchards.