Man in country illegally sentenced to 99 years in prison for child sexual abuse in Texas
A Collin County jury sentenced 39-year-old Ismael Lopez to 99 years in prison Wednesday for continuous sexual abuse of a child, according to a news release from the Collin County District Attorney’s Office.
Lopez was convicted of continuously abusing a child for three years, starting when the child was 10, according to the release. He will not have the possibility of parole. A conviction of continuous sexual abuse does not allow for parole by law.
Prosecutors said Lopez started abusing the child when he or she was 10 years old. Lopez continued the abuse for three years, telling the child to keep it a secret. The child told his or her family about the abuse eventually, the district attorney’s office said in the release.
Lopez was close to the child’s family, which gave him ongoing access to the child. The family reported the abuse to Plano police after the child told them about it. The child disclosed more details about the ongoing abuse during a forensic interview with the Children’s Advocacy Center of Collin County, according to the release.
Lopez had prior convictions for assault, driving while intoxicated, and possession of a controlled substance. He served prison sentences for those charges and was released to federal immigration custody in 2017. He was deported but returned to the country illegally, according to the release.