Fairfax County Father Charged in Death of 3-Month-Old Daughter

Misael Lopez Gomez, 28, was alone with his 3-month-old daughter inside their Bailey's Crossroads apartment when officers flooded the 3400 block of Lake Street shortly after 7:30 p.m. on March 27, 2026, responding to a report of an unresponsive infant. Arriving officers found the baby not breathing and immediately began CPR until Fairfax County Fire and Rescue personnel took over life-saving efforts. She was transported to a local hospital and later pronounced dead.

Four days of investigation by the Fairfax County Police Department's Homicide Squad and Child Abuse Squad, both operating under the Mason Police District's Major Crimes Bureau, culminated in Lopez Gomez's arrest on March 31. The preliminary autopsy conducted by Virginia's Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined the cause of death was blunt-force trauma, a finding that moved the case firmly from tragedy into criminal homicide. Detectives and hospital staff had each independently observed evidence consistent with abuse during the course of the investigation.

Lopez Gomez now faces two charges: second-degree murder, a Class 2 felony in Virginia carrying a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison, and felony child abuse, a Class 4 felony that adds a potential two to ten years and a fine of up to $100,000. He is held without bond at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center and was arraigned on April 2.

The case drew immediate federal attention. Authorities confirmed Lopez Gomez is a Guatemalan national who, according to investigators, admitted to crossing the U.S. southern border illegally in July 2023 near Albuquerque, New Mexico. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lodged an arrest detainer following his arrest, and on April 1, the Department of Homeland Security publicly called on Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger to ensure that detainer is honored and that Lopez Gomez is not released from state custody. Acting Assistant DHS Secretary Lauren Bis commented directly on the case. DHS identified this as the third murder-related ICE detainer filed against an undocumented immigrant charged with murder in Fairfax County within roughly a single month, a figure that intensified political pressure on both the governor and county officials over the county's sanctuary-style policies. As of April 6, Governor Spanberger's office had not publicly committed to honoring the detainer.

That same day, DHS separately criticized the Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney's office for allegedly offering a five-year plea deal to two other undocumented immigrants facing murder charges in an unrelated case, deepening scrutiny of how the county handles violent crimes involving undocumented defendants.

The full autopsy report from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, which can take several weeks to finalize, is expected to serve as a cornerstone of the prosecution as the case advances through Fairfax County's court system.