A gunman accused of killing at least five people at a home in San Jacinto County is believed to be cornered, according to Sheriff Greg Capers.
The incident started as a harassment call to the sheriff’s office just after 11:30 p.m. Friday night at a home on Walter Drive in the Trails End subdivision. Capers said it immediately turned into a shooting.
According to Capers, Oropeza escaped the area after the shooting. Several guns were recovered from his home by a SWAT team. They also believe Oropeza is in a wooded area near the scene after initially believing he was 10 to 20 miles away.
"Just stay in your house," Capers said. "Be vigilant. Keep your eyes open. If you see anything, say something...this man is very dangerous and he is armed, potentially."
Capers said Oropeza was known to shoot his rifle in the front yard and that they've had numerous calls to the area. The sheriff's office said he has been charged with five counts of murder.
The FBI said it's assisting in the search for Oropeza. Officials created a perimeter around the scene in hopes of capturing him.
“If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.” ― Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
I mentioned Cleveland because the article I first read early this morning stated the shooting was in Cleveland.
Five people were fatally shot, including an 8-year-old, in a Cleveland, Texas, home after a Friday night rampage that started with a noise complaint about gunfire, according to the San Jacinto County Sheriff's Office.
realist wrote: ↑Sat Apr 29, 2023 6:32 pm
I mentioned Cleveland because the article I first read early this morning stated the shooting was in Cleveland.
Five people were fatally shot, including an 8-year-old, in a Cleveland, Texas, home after a Friday night rampage that started with a noise complaint about gunfire, according to the San Jacinto County Sheriff's Office.
Yes, many articles have put the crime in Cleveland because it is the closest city of any size (about 8000 residents) when you look at a map. Reporters should be more careful. A minute on the Internet would have revealed that Cleveland is not in SJ County.
In the grand scheme of things it doesn't really matter but it is so easy these days to get it right.
“If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.” ― Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
p0rtia wrote: ↑Sat Apr 29, 2023 6:36 pm
I've asked this question before in this thread. I ask it again with feeling:
Since WHEN is it legal to shoot guns in your residential YARD???
I can't speak for other communities, but some years ago I contacted law enforcement over shooting I heard on weekends in wetlands area adjacent to residential neighborhood. It was likely duck hunting with a rifle, but still...
They advised me that kind of stuff was a no-no so close to residential neighborhoods and next time I heard that to call 911. Haven't heard it for years, so assume problem solved.
Meanwhile:
Hey, Ted Cruz & Greg Abbott: a mass shooting occurred in your state overnight. An 8-year-old was killed and the shooter used an AR-15. Enough with your thoughts & prayers. Do something about it before more people are killed because of your inaction. Gen Z is watching.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott was grilled on social media for a lighthearted post in the wake of a grisly mass shooting in his state.
At least five people were killed in a Friday shooting at a property in Cleveland, Texas, a city located roughly 55 miles northeast of Houston. Three of the victims were female, with the other two being male, including an eight-year-old boy. At least three other minors were found uninjured by responding officers, including two children located underneath two of the female victims.
The suspect, 39-year-old Francisco Oropeza, remains at large after the incident, with a local FBI field office assisting in the search and a judge issuing an arrest warrant with a $5 million bond. Police reported that Oropeza allegedly carried out the shooting using an AR-15-style rifle after the victims, who were his neighbors, asked him to stop firing a gun in his front yard because it was keeping a baby awake.
As of Saturday evening, several hours after the news about the grisly shooting emerged, Governor Abbott, a Republican, had yet to issue a public statement about the situation. At approximately 12:30 p.m. local time, Abbott's official Twitter account instead shared a lighthearted post featuring a photo of his dog, declaring, "All smiles for the weekend."
Until it starts happening to their families, nothing will change. And I'm sure they think it never will.
"Choose your leaders with wisdom and forethought. To be led by a coward is to be controlled by all that the coward fears… To be led by a liar is to ask to be told lies." -Octavia E. Butler
“Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide.” —John Adams
The search for a Texas man who allegedly shot his neighbors after they asked him to stop firing off rounds in his yard stretched into a second day Sunday, with authorities saying the man could be anywhere by now.
Francisco Oropeza, 38, fled after the shooting Friday night that left five people dead, including an 8-year-old boy. San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said Saturday evening that authorities had widened the search to as far as 20 miles (32 kilometers) from the scene of the shooting.
Investigators found clothes and a phone while combing a rural area that includes dense layers of forest, but tracking dogs lost the scent, Capers said.
Police recovered the AR-15-style rifle that Oropeza allegedly used in the shootings but authorities were not sure if he was carrying another weapon, the sheriff said.
“He could be anywhere now,” Capers said.
The attack happened near the town of Cleveland, north of Houston, on a street where some residents say neighbors often unwind by firing off guns.
“If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.” ― Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
FBI spokesperson Christina Garza said investigators do not believe everyone at the home were members of a single family. The victims were identified as Sonia Argentina Guzman, 25; Diana Velazquez Alvarado, 21; Julisa Molina Rivera, 31; Jose Jonathan Casarez, 18; and Daniel Enrique Laso, 8.
The confrontation followed the neighbors walking up to the fence and asking the suspect to stop shooting rounds, Capers said. The suspect responded by telling them that it was his property, Capers said, and one person in the house got a video of the suspect walking up to the front door with the rifle.
The shooting took place on a rural pothole-riddled street where single-story homes sit on wide 1-acre lots and are surrounded by a thick canopy of trees. A horse could be seen behind the victim’s home, while in the front yard of Oropeza’s house a dog and chickens wandered.
Rene Arevalo Sr., who lives a few houses down, said he heard gunshots around midnight but didn’t think anything of it.
“It’s a normal thing people do around here, especially on Fridays after work,” Arevalo said. “They get home and start drinking in their backyards and shooting out there.”
Capers said his deputies had been to Oropeza’s home at least once before and spoken with him about “shooting his gun in the yard.” It was not clear whether any action was taken at the time. At a news conference Saturday evening, the sheriff said firing a gun on your own property can be illegal, but he did not say whether Oropeza had previously broken the law.
“If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.” ― Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
FBI Houston
@FBIHouston
The multi-agency search for suspect Francisco Oropeza continues this morning. Reminder, if you see him DO NOT approach him. He is armed and dangerous. If you have a tip about his whereabouts call the San Jacinto County Sheriff's Office at 936-653-4367.
“If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.” ― Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
"He could be anywhere now," San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said Saturday night, adding that investigators have widened their perimeter from about 5 or 6 square miles to "as much as 10 or 20 depending on whether or not he crossed the highline wire."
Authorities found an abandoned cell phone and articles of clothing lying around, and tracking dogs from the Texas Department of Correction "picked up a scent and then … lost that scent in the water," according to the sheriff.
The San Jacinto River and several of its tributaries flow thru SJ County which also borders Lake Livingston. Lots of water there.
“If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.” ― Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
"He could be anywhere now," San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said Saturday night, adding that investigators have widened their perimeter from about 5 or 6 square miles to "as much as 10 or 20 depending on whether or not he crossed the highline wire."
Authorities found an abandoned cell phone and articles of clothing lying around, and tracking dogs from the Texas Department of Correction "picked up a scent and then … lost that scent in the water," according to the sheriff.
The San Jacinto River and several of its tributaries flow thru SJ County which also borders Lake Livingston. Lots of water there.
Does he have cash to go on the run for an extended period? By now, his debt/credit cards are locked, I imagine. He won't survive without money. If he tries to use his debit card, that is an instant alert to his location.
Perhaps he knows how to live off the land. The Sam Houston National Forest is known for its game. The nights there are not so very cold now. Plenty of fresh water.
I wouldn't have a clue how to survive there but maybe he does.
Or maybe he is headed south to Mexico. US law enforcement worries mostly about people heading north from Mexico. Sneaking south into Mexico might not be very difficult.
I fear he might get away.
“If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.” ― Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
Volkonski wrote: ↑Sun Apr 30, 2023 6:07 pm
Perhaps he knows how to live off the land. The Sam Houston National Forest is known for its game. The nights there are not so very cold now. Plenty of fresh water.
I wouldn't have a clue how to survive there but maybe he does.
Or maybe he is headed south to Mexico. US law enforcement worries mostly about people heading north from Mexico. Sneaking south into Mexico might not be very difficult.
I fear he might get away.
Perhaps he wants to get to Mexico, but looking at the map... it's a very long on foot trek from where he is and the nearest land/river crossing. Guessing 100 miles+. Unless he wants to swim the gulf to Mexico.
BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. (WLOX) - A Pass Christian teen was arrested after a mass shooting in Bay St. Louis killed two people and injured four others.
Cameron Everest Brand, 19, was initially arrested on six charges of aggravated assault, which have since been upgraded to homicide.
Early Sunday morning, Bay St. Louis police responded to a shooting in the 1000 block of Old Blue Meadow Road.
When they arrived, officers found multiple people suffering from gunshot wounds at what appeared to be an after-prom party. Others had been taken to area hospitals by private vehicle before officers arrived.
WLOX News Now reporter Leslie Rojas spoke to the mom and girl who had the party. The mom was present.
They told her the shooter just came in and started shooting at people. The crowd scattered. Trails of blood could be seen on the pavement outside the home on Sunday morning....
X 4
X 32
No way. 
