Windsor Teen ID'd In Hartford Homicide

HARTFORD, CT — Police are investigating an early morning homicide after 16-year-old Felipe Lopez was found in a crashed vehicle with gunshot wounds near 800 Albany Avenue.

"The Hartford Police Department is saddened by the loss of life and we will be pursuing every lead to bring justice," police said in a statement.

Lopez was a student in a program LP Wilson. He would have been 17 on Friday. He was driving an unregistered and uninsured vehicle and didn't have a license, according to NBC Connecticut. The car wasn't stolen. His family told NBC that he may have been driving for Uber.

"Felipe has been a member of the Windsor school community for a few years and will be remembered fondly by his friends and fellow students," said Superintendent Craig Cooke.

The school will have grief counselors at LP Wilson Community Center and Windsor High School.
Police are attempting to get search warrants to search his vehicle and his phone to determine why he was in Hartford, but so far it doesn't appear to be gang or drug-related, police said. It does appear he was specifically targeted.

Police are working to determine whether the shooting happened from inside or outside of the vehicle and it's possible Lopez drove a short distance after being shot, according to the Hartford Courant.

Lopez's family said he recently became a father and was going to start a new job at Dunkin Donuts Wednesday.

Anyone with any information is asked to call the Hartford Police TIP LINE 860-722-8477.