Man arrested in fatal stabbing outside Hempstead bar, police say

A Hempstead man has been arrested in a fatal stabbing five months ago outside a Hempstead bar, police said Friday.

William Lopez, 34, is charged with second-degree murder in the slaying of Rolando Cruz, 39, of Freeport, after a verbal altercation in front of El Nuevo bar on Fulton Avenue about 1:10 a.m. April 10, Nassau County police said.

Police at the time said three unidentified men were involved in the stabbing of Cruz, who was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead less than a half-hour after the attack.

Lopez is scheduled to be arraigned Saturday in First District Court in Hempstead, police said.