BEXAR COUNTY, Texas – A former Bexar County Sheriff’s Office deputy was charged with murder Friday, days after a 46-year-old man was found dead in the Bexar County jail, records show.
Jailer Clemente Lopez, 20, is accused of opening the door to another cell and allowing other inmates to violently assault Francisco Bazan, 46, according to an arrest affidavit.
Authorities believe “Lopez facilitated the physical assault of Bazan by numerous inmates, which later resulted in serious bodily injury and later his death.”
A group of inmates “coordinated effort to assault Bazan” and “instructed Lopez to open the door,” the warrant states.
Lopez admitted to investigators he saw three other inmates assault Bazan by kicking his face and smashing Bazan’s head on the concrete, according to the warrant.
After being interviewed by investigators, Lopez submitted his resignation at the sheriff’s office and was immediately taken into custody, BCSO Deputy Johnny Garcia said in a statement.
“Lopez was observing the entire assault from outside (the jail cell),” the warrant states.
BCSO officials later found Bazan unresponsive in his cell, sheriff’s officials previously said.
Medical staff was called and life-saving measures were performed, including administering Narcan to revive him. Bazan was ultimately pronounced dead at 3:14 a.m.
Authorities said Bazan was found with apparent “blunt-force injury” to his torso, which could indicate his death was a homicide.
An autopsy revealed Bazan’s manner of death was homicide and that he had suffered from an extensive amount of internal bleeding, according to the warrant.
Lopez, who began working for BCSO in August 2023, is the fifth deputy from the agency arrested so far this year.
Lopez’s bond is set at $500,000, records show.
Three inmates named in Lopez’s arrest warrant had still not been formally charged as of Friday afternoon, records show.
“From the first day of training, cadets and deputies are reminded that inmates are neither their friends nor their enemies,” Sheriff Javier Salazar said in a statement to KSAT. “This suspect ignored both of those points and is now paying for it with his freedom and his career.”
Per KSAT’s count, Bazan’s death inside the jail is the fourth since Jan. 1, 2025.
Of those, one death has been ruled a suicide, while two others were described as inmates suffering medical episodes.
Inmate Jose Barrera’s death last August was ruled a homicide. Another inmate, Jesus Gonzales, took his own life with a handgun while being booked into jail in early March of last year.
In all, 13 inmates died after being booked into the jail in 2024.
Bazan was booked into jail on March 28 on charges of evading arrest/detention in a motor vehicle, a state jail felony, and possession of a controlled substance, a third-degree felony, according to BCSO.
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