Cause of death determined for woman found in Modesto church parking lot
Authorities released Wednesday the cause of death of the woman who was found in her car at a Modesto church in September.
Erika Lopez, 39, died by suicide, said Modesto police Sgt. Kalani Souza. He said her cause of death was self-inflicted asphyxiation, but would not elaborate.
Lopez’s family reported her missing just after 11 p.m. Sept. 23. A co-worker who was searching for her found her in her vehicle at St. Stanislaus Catholic Church the following afternoon.
At the time, the Lopez family took to social media and identified a man they believed to be involved in her disappearance and death.
Souza said detectives talked to that man and determined he was not involved.
At 7:46 p.m. Sept. 23, Lopez called her daughter and told her she was on her way home from work and would arrive in about 30 minutes, according to a social media post from the daughter.
Around 8 p.m., at least four family members and friends received text messages from Lopez, who expressed her love and gratitude to them, according to Ceres Police Chief Rick Collins. Not long after that, no one was able to reach her.
Ceres police, which handled the missing person report, made efforts to locate Lopez and the man the family had identified, but were not given his correct name, Collins said.
Neither Modesto nor Ceres police released information about what, if any, relationship Lopez had with the man.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at any time of day.
