Man Arrested After Body Discovered In Palo Alto Parking Garage

PALO ALTO, CA — Palo Alto detectives have arrested a man accused of killing a man whose body was found in a downtown parking garage last month.

The victim was discovered lying face down on the first floor of a Bryant Street parking garage around 12:15 p.m. on July 25. Police said the man's death immediately appeared suspicious, and an autopsy later confirmed he died from blunt force trauma to the head. He was identified as James Allen Rudolph, 65, who police described as a member of the unhoused community.

Detectives worked over the following days to follow up on the case and by Thursday morning secured an arrest warrant. Police identified the suspect Friday as Alvaro Javier Lopez, 34, who investigators believe is also an unhoused Palo Alto resident.

Officers arrested Lopez Thursday morning inside a city parking garage on High Street, and he was booked into jail on the arrest warrant. Police said the homicide investigation remains active as detectives comb through a "significant amount of evidence." Details on a possible motive were not immediately available.

Anyone with information related to the case can contact dispatch at 650-329-2413.