Texas Police Arrest 2 for Evidence Tampering After 18-Year-Old's Lake Drowning

Q: What was in the deleted phone messages that made two teens risk a decade in prison after their friend's death?

No one outside investigators appears to know. The public record does not disclose the contents of the deleted messages, only that Lucas Roper admitted deleting “all communications” with Daniel Erving from his phone, including texts and call logs, after Erving drowned at Lake Ray Hubbard. According to the arrest affidavits and police statements, the deleted exchanges were communications between Roper and Erving on the day of the incident. Investigators say Roper told them he erased them because he knew there would be an investigation and “did not want to get into trouble.” Police also allege he instructed the juvenile suspect to throw away Erving’s cellphone and that Erving’s clothing was discarded near the bridge. That means the key fact is not what the messages specifically said, but that authorities believe the teens tried to destroy potential evidence after the drowning. In Texas, tampering with physical evidence is a third-degree felony punishable by two to ten years in prison, which is why the stakes are so high. The family’s public questions center on the same issue: if the death was accidental, why hide the phone, clothing and message history? But based on what has been released so far, there is no verified public evidence showing the messages contained threats, a plan, or proof of a more serious crime. The investigation remains open, and any answer beyond that would be speculation.

3 articles · Updated · abcnews.com · Jul 14

Dallas police arrested Lucas Roper, 19, and a juvenile on third-degree felony evidence-tampering charges tied to Daniel Erving's drowning at Lake Ray Hubbard.
Investigators said the two were with Erving when he drowned, failed to report it, then fled and discarded his clothing and cellphone; Roper also allegedly deleted messages with Erving.
The medical examiner ruled Erving's death an accidental drowning, but police said the alleged concealment led detectives to seek arrest warrants after interviews and recovered evidence.
An arrest affidavit says Erving, 18, was reported missing on April 13 after the three jumped from a railroad bridge near Miller Road; the case remains under investigation.