Lopez was last seen in Polvadera, New Mexico on April 15, 2009. She had been drinking with her boyfriend and one of his friends at her boyfriend's home on Valley Loop Road. An argument occurred, and Lopez left the residence. The two men went out to buy more beer, and her boyfriend saw her walking on the banks of a nearby ditch, talking on her cellular phone. When they returned, Lopez was gone. She has never been heard from again. Her boyfriend initially believed she'd gone to Albuquerque, New Mexico to visit her daughter, but several days later her daughter called and he realized she wasn't with him. The boyfriend became worried and searched the area, and he found one of Lopez's shoes in the ditch where she was last seen. He called the police to report her disappearance.

An extensive search covering several miles of the ditch turned up no sign of Lopez or her body. However, police did locate Lopez's other shoe, and they stated the investigation had turned in another direction. Authorities are treating Lopez's disappearance as a missing persons case rather than an accident or a crime. Her case remains unsolved.