Global Courant 2023-04-30 20:56:24
The Mexican who was wanted in the execution-style shooting of five of his Texas neighbors remained at large more than 24 hours later Sunday morning and “could be anywhere now.”
FBI Houston tweeted Sunday morning that the multi-agency search for suspect Francisco Oropeza, 38, continues. “Reminder, if you see him, DO NOT approach him. He is armed and dangerous. If you have a tip on his whereabouts, call the San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office at 936-653-4367,” the tweet read.
Oropeza is charged with shooting and killing five neighbors, including an 8-year-old child, at the 100 block of Walters Road in the Trails End area of Cleveland, Texas.
At the most recent news conference Saturday night, San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said all future updates would come from the FBI.
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FBI Houston also said the San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office will release another photo of Oropeza on Sunday, taken in August 2022, as well as an image of his large tattoo of what authorities say appears to be “a female Aztec” on his left forearm.
The San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office has released another photo of Francisco Oropeza, the suspect in the August 2022 Cleveland shooting, as well as an image of his large tattoo of what appears to be a female Aztec on his left forearm. (F.B.I. Houston)
“He could be anywhere right now,” Capers said Saturday night, explaining how researchers have widened their circumference from about 5 or 6 square miles to “as many as 10 or 20, depending on whether he passed the highline wire or not.” Authorities found an abandoned cell phone and items of clothing lying around, and Texas Department of Correction sniffer dogs “picked up a scent and then lost that scent in the water,” the sheriff said.
FBI Houston said Francisco Oropeza, 38, is considered armed and dangerous. Anyone with a tip related to the shooting or Oropeza’s whereabouts is urged to call the San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office at 936-653-4367. (F.B.I. Houston)
The deceased victims have been identified as Sonia Argentina Guzman, 25; Daniel Enrique Laso Guzman, 8; Diana Velázquez Alvarado, 21; Julia Molina Rivera, 31; and Jose Jonathan Casarez, 18. Capers explained how the suspect was known to shoot down his AR-15 Style 223 outside his home, as evidenced by the number of shell casings in the yard.
On the night of the massacre, Oropeza reportedly did so again before midnight, causing a neighbor to step outside and explain how people were trying to put a baby to bed.
Law enforcement officials believed they had cornered a suspect who allegedly shot and killed five people at a home in unincorporated San Jacinto County, Texas, the night before, April 29, 2023. But the alleged shooter remains at large. (Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle via AP)
The suspect said something along the lines of, “It’s his property. He’ll do whatever he wants on his property,” the sheriff said.
The man went back into the house. Before they know it, he’s walking up the driveway, gun in hand,” Capers said.
The sheriff told KPRC that Oropeza, a Mexican man, was identified by video showing the suspect going to his neighbors’ door and by a map from the Mexican consulate.
At the time the suspect entered, a total of ten people were present in the house. Five of those victims died and another five were not physically injured, Capers said.
Francisco Oropeza, 39, a Mexican national, is suspected of killing five people near Cleveland, Texas, Friday, April 28, 2023. (Fox news)
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The sheriff said two women were found lying on top of three surviving children who were “covered in blood” and taken to the hospital, where they were discovered to be unharmed.
San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers talks to detectives at the scene where five people were shot dead the night before, Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle via AP)
Wilson Garcia, a survivor who allegedly owns the home where the shooting took place, told KTRK he was the one who stepped out because his 1-month-old was trying to sleep.
“We had company. We went to make something to eat, the guy came out and he was shooting. We asked him to be quiet because my baby was scared,” Garcia said through an interpreter. He recalled telling Oropeza he would call the police, but before he could do so, the suspect came to his front door and shot his wife, Sonia, where she was standing.
“I never thought he would shoot. Then he went from room to room, looking for people,” Garcia said. “He couldn’t catch up with me. The bullets hit (everywhere).”
Law enforcement is removing bodies from a scene where five people were shot the night before Saturday, April 29, 2023 in Cleveland, Texas. (Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle via AP)
“The FBI has deployed investigative, tactical, and victim support resources to assist with this investigation. We will be here until we are no longer required to record when the subject is arrested,” James Smith, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Houston Field Office, told reporters Saturday night. “We are still looking for this person. We consider him armed and dangerous. And we are not going to stop until we actually arrest and take him into custody. But he is out there and he is a threat.” to the community.”
“So I don’t want anyone to think anything other than that. He’s a threat to the community and we need the community’s help to hopefully locate him soon and get him off the streets tonight. But either way I will Saying this, we’re not asking the community to take matters into their own hands. Call 911 if you happen to see this person.”
Law enforcement agencies responded to a scene in which five people were shot the night before Saturday, April 29, 2023 in Cleveland, Texas. (Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle via AP)
A judge has issued a warrant for the suspect’s arrest and has already assigned $5 million bail for when he is taken into custody.
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Deputies from the night shift patrol were initially sent to the home in connection with a complaint of intimidation. En route, the communications center received multiple 911 calls of an active shooting incident at the dispatched location. Several deputies arrived at the residence and found four dead persons in the house.
The eight-year-old child was airlifted to hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The victims are said to be from Honduras.
Danielle Wallace is a reporter for Fox News Digital covering politics, crime, police and more. Story tips can be sent to danielle.wallace@fox.com and on Twitter: @danimwallace.