Police say the gunfire followed a dispute over joining a soccer game.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — An 18-year-old man has been charged with murder after police said a dispute over a soccer game ended with the shooting deaths of a teenage boy and a mother outside Southwest Elementary School.
Rafael Martinez-Lopez faces two counts of open murder, two felony firearm charges and additional weapons counts in the deaths of 15-year-old Jeremiah Cuevas-Griffin and 39-year-old Savanah Villarreal. The case has shaken the Roosevelt Park neighborhood, where children had gathered Tuesday evening for an informal soccer game before gunfire broke out.
Grand Rapids police said officers were called about 6:40 p.m. May 5 to the school property. When they arrived, they found Jeremiah and Villarreal with life-threatening gunshot wounds. First responders tried to save both victims. Jeremiah died at the scene, and Villarreal later died at a hospital. Interim Police Chief Joe Trigg said the suspect had asked to join the game and became angry after he was turned away.
Trigg said the rejection led to a verbal dispute before the gunman pulled out a firearm and shot the boy. Villarreal then tried to help, police said. “The adult female had came to the aid, verbally, of the juvenile victim so then she was targeted,” Trigg said. Police said at least seven or eight children witnessed the shooting. No other injuries were reported.
Family members identified Villarreal as a mother of eight who was watching children at the playground. Relatives said Jeremiah knew her well and considered her family. The shooting led Grand Rapids Public Schools to close Southwest Elementary and another nearby school Wednesday while students, families and staff processed the deaths. Classes at Southwest Middle High School resumed Thursday, and Southwest Elementary was expected to resume Friday.
Police said Martinez-Lopez fled after the shooting but was later arrested. The Grand Rapids Police Department’s Major Case Team is investigating. Authorities have not said in public records reviewed for this report whether the firearm has been recovered, where it came from or whether Martinez-Lopez knew the victims before the soccer game dispute.
The killings have drawn grief across the neighborhood, where a memorial formed near the school property. Area resident Donny Irving said the loss reached beyond the families. “Everyone knows a youth and people who go to playgrounds who play, school students, and I think the whole community feels the loss that’s there,” Irving said.
The case now moves through Kent County court as investigators continue gathering witness statements and evidence. Martinez-Lopez remains accused in the deaths of Villarreal and Jeremiah, and police said the investigation remains active.
Author note: Last updated May 8, 2026.