Cary man gets three-year sentence for crash that killed Glenview police officer

A 24-year-old Cary man charged in the fatal crash last year that killed decorated Glenview police officer Robert Fryc has been sentenced to three years in prison.

Christopher Lopez pleaded guilty to reckless homicide in connection with the Feb. 16, 2025, crash in the 200 block of South Northwest Highway in Barrington.

Authorities say Lopez was on his way home after drinking with friends at a banquet hall when the crash occurred at about 4 a.m. They say Lopez was speeding above the 35 mph limit when he failed to make a curve, crossed over several lanes and a center median before colliding with Fryc's oncoming car.

Fryc, 43, swerved to avoid the collision but was unable to escape “the defendant barreling into the driver’s side of his vehicle,” prosecutors said during Lopez’s detention hearing last year. The crash’s impact forced Fryc’s vehicle into a snow-covered sidewalk, prosecutors said.

An 18-year veteran of the Glenview Police Department, Fryc had been honored 12 days earlier for helping to save the life of a fellow officer in 2024. Officials said Fryc, also a Cary resident, was on his way to work when the deadly crash occurred.

Authorities said Lopez admitted to drinking “multiple alcoholic beverages” several hours before the crash. A preliminary breath test indicated a .059 blood alcohol content, below the .08 legal limit for driving, prosecutors said.