Finder of Boys Had Lewd Conduct Arrest in ’87 : Investigation: Enrique Palma Lopez was never charged in incident, police say. In TV interview, Matthew Vera identifies Lopez as ‘El Patito,’ his mysterious caretaker during time he was missing.

As Los Angeles police investigated a day laborer’s involvement in the recovery of two missing boys within the last month, detectives on Wednesday confirmed reports that the man, known as Enrique Palma Lopez, had previously been arrested on suspicion of lewd behavior with a child.

Also adding a new twist to the investigation, 4-year-old Matthew Vera, who was “found” by Lopez in early December, referred to Lopez as “El Patito,” the mysterious figure who Matthew earlier said had bathed and fed him, after being shown a photograph of Lopez in a televised report on KCBS Tuesday night.

After Lopez, 31, came to police with Matthew in early December, police said El Patito could have been a figment of the child’s imagination.

Detective Yvette Eggleston of the LAPD’s Central Division said police did not learn of Lopez’s police record until they began an investigation Monday after Lopez reported recovering another lost child, 3-year-old Andrew Rodriguez.

Police were apparently confused by Lopez’s many aliases: In addition to Enrique Palma Lopez, he has identified himself as Jose Ramirez Rodriguez, Jose Jimenez, Eric Enrique Palma and Henry P. Lord, among others. He has also given police several dates of birth.

According to a police source, Lopez was arrested in March, 1987, on suspicion of lewd behavior with a child under 14. He was never charged.

In 1988, the Immigration and Naturalization Service caught up with Lopez, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, and he voluntarily returned to his native country, the source said. It is uncertain when he came back to California.

The source also mentioned that Lopez has an Alaska state identification card.

Detectives on Tuesday were interviewing friends of Lopez and some of the people who had sent him money after he came forward with Matthew. In a new clue in the case, Lopez gave different phone numbers to several people who sent him money. Police had believed that there was only one phone number where Lopez could be reached.

Detectives had not seen Lopez since Monday, when he was released after 10 hours of interrogation because there was not enough evidence to charge him with any crime, Eggleston said.

Police on Tuesday visited the Downtown Greyhound bus station and showed people Lopez’s photograph, but did not uncover any clues to the case, Eggleston said.

Matthew disappeared from the station in early December, and Andrew, who was reported missing on Christmas Day from a Downtown video arcade, was also reportedly spotted there. In an interview with The Times two weeks ago, friends of Lopez said he sometimes slept on buses at the station--an assertion that Lopez denied to police.

Detectives were trying to link Lopez with El Patito but had not had any success, Eggleston said.

After Lopez brought Matthew to the LAPD’s Newton Division station, he told family members about a man he met at the Greyhound bus stop whom he called El Patito, Spanish for little duck. El Patito took Matthew to the beach and shopping, buying him a sweater and a pair of jeans, the boy said. He also took Matthew to a house where other children were, fed him beans and bathed him.

Matthew said he later fell asleep inside a cab with El Patito, and was in the cab when El Patito said that he was tired of him and that he should go.

Lopez told police that he found Matthew walking alone on Pico Boulevard, bought a hamburger and milk for the hungry boy with his last dollars, then phoned authorities.

Andrew is too young to articulate very well and has therefore been unable to tell police what he did during the nine days he was missing.

Police found out from Lopez’s friends Tuesday that he had been living with a couple in San Fernando, and they were trying to find the home.

A $25,000 reward was offered for information leading to the return of Andrew--a reward Lopez said in a television interview that he deserves. But Eggleston said Tuesday that no reward will be paid until the police investigation is closed.