Daniel Erving’s family had pressed authorities for answers before an evidence-tampering charge was filed nearly three months after his drowning.
DALLAS, Texas — The arrest of a 19-year-old man has opened a new phase in the investigation of Daniel Erving’s death, nearly three months after the teenager drowned in Lake Ray Hubbard and his family began demanding answers about what happened.
Dallas police arrested Lucas Roper on July 9 and charged him with tampering with physical evidence. An arrest affidavit alleges that Erving’s clothes and cellphone were discarded after the 18-year-old entered the lake April 13. Investigators also allege Roper deleted communications with Erving because he feared getting into trouble.
The charge addresses conduct investigators say occurred after the drowning. It does not allege that Roper caused Erving’s death, and authorities have not announced that the death itself was a homicide. Roper is presumed innocent unless proved guilty in court.
According to the affidavit, Erving left his home April 13 and went with Roper and a 17-year-old boy to an area of Lake Ray Hubbard near Miller Road in Rowlett. Investigators said the three planned to fish and swim before jumping from a bridge into the water.
Erving drowned after entering the lake, the affidavit said. His body was recovered April 17, four days after he disappeared. Rowlett police initially handled the missing-person case, while Dallas police later led the investigation into the death.
The affidavit alleges Roper and the younger boy left the area in Roper’s vehicle after Erving went beneath the water. Police said Erving’s clothes were thrown into a tree line near the bridge and that his cellphone was tossed from the vehicle as the two drove away.
Investigators later recovered both the clothing and the phone. A review of the device found calls and messages between Roper and Erving from the day of the drowning, including communications about meeting to fish and swim, according to the affidavit.
Police said the same exchanges were missing from Roper’s phone. The affidavit states that Roper told investigators he deleted the communications because he expected an investigation and did not want to get into trouble.
Dallas police interviewed Roper at Sachse High School on April 20, according to the affidavit. Investigators allege he acknowledged leaving the lake and telling the 17-year-old to throw Erving’s phone from the vehicle. The younger person gave investigators a separate account alleging Roper discarded Erving’s clothes.
Roper was granted a $10,000 bond, according to jail records cited by CBS News Texas. No attorney was identified for him in the available reports, and no public response to the allegations had been released on his behalf.
Before the arrest, Erving’s relatives and the Next Generation Action Network had publicly sought more information from police. The organization said the family deserved a full account of the response to Erving’s disappearance and the investigation that followed.
In a June 7 letter to Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux, the group asked the department to provide meaningful updates and assurances that every possible violation of law was being examined. The organization said it recognized that investigators must follow the evidence while arguing that public accountability also required a thorough review.
Dominique Alexander, the group’s president, said after Roper’s arrest that advocates would continue monitoring the case. He also said additional charges could be possible, although authorities had not confirmed that any other charge was planned.
Alexander said the 17-year-old had also been taken into custody, but that statement had not been independently confirmed in the available police or court records. FOX 4 reported that the juvenile’s status remained unknown.
The arrest provides one answer for Erving’s family by showing that prosecutors are pursuing an allegation tied to the handling of evidence. Major questions remain, including whether anyone tried to summon help, when authorities first learned Erving had entered the water and whether further criminal allegations will emerge.
Dallas police have described the investigation as ongoing. Authorities had not announced additional charges, released a final account of the drowning or disclosed the next scheduled court proceeding as of Sunday.
Author note: Last updated July 12, 2026.