Couple face murder charges after slain son found poisoned, starved

CALAVERAS COUNTY, California: The local police department and district attorney’s office have called it ‘justice for Roman’ after the father and stepmother were slapped with murder charges following 11-year-old son’s death last year.

The couple including 36-year-old Jordan Piper and 38-year-old Lindsay Piper had been arrested in February in California’s Calaveras County after their son’s body was found inside a storage bin in the basement of the family’s Placerville home in January 2020.

The couple is now facing murder charges in connection with Roman Lopez’s death.

Earlier in February, Jordan and Lindsay had been charged with ‘child abuse likely to cause great bodily injury or death and now they will face first-degree murder charges, according to CrimeOnline.

The body of Roman Lopez had been found by police following an extensive search around his Placerville neighbourhood.

The child was reportedly living with his father, stepmother and seven other children at 2892 Coloma Street, whereas, the neighbours said that the family had only recently moved to the area when the incident occurred

Last year, Jordan Piper had complained that it took two hours for deputies to arrive to look for his Roman when he claimed to be searching for his son.

“And the only reason we got it is because I physically pulled two deputies over in their department car … so I kept pushing, I kept pushing,” Piper said. Piper added that around 15 hours after Roman disappeared, authorities found him.

Later, the police had found Roman inside a storage bin in the basement of the family’s Placerville home. He was severely dehydrated and malnourished. The murder charges were “slow to develop” because an autopsy didn’t initially find any signs of trauma on the victim.

CBS Sacramento reports that the Placerville Police Department and the DA’s office didn’t say what led to murder charges against the couple but called it “justice for Roman.”

“It’s great news. Justice for Roman is what we have been aiming for this entire investigation. So long as we get justice for that little guy we will be happy,” Dan Maciel, the commander with the Placerville Police Department, said.

According to a previous arrest warrant, Lindsay Piper is accused of poisoning the water that Roman drank. Both Jordan and Lindsey Piper are charged with child abuse and torture. Jordan Piper has an added charge of failure to provide for a child. Lindsay Piper has an added charge of poisoning.

“This is a horrific crime that shocked the community,” said Placerville police Chief Joseph Wren. “The death of a child affects us all. Now it’s time for the perpetrators to face justice.”

It emerged that the biological mother of Roman Lopez, Shelly Lopez had suffered from injuries sustained while serving in the US Army and deployed in Iraq which resulted in a pain pill addiction following which the child’s father gained custody of the boy.

Prior to his death, Lopez hadn’t seen Roman in around two years. She found out about her son’s death last year after family members read an online news story.

In April 2021, Shelly Lopez passed away. Family members declined to share how she died.