The individual thought to be the perpetrator behind the killing of five neighbors in Texas using an AR-15 rifle has been taken into custody by law enforcement officials on Tuesday, according to San Jacinto County District Attorney Todd Dillon. The suspect, thought to be 38-year-old Francisco Oropesa, was arrested in Cut and Shoot, Texas. Authorities are currently waiting for fingerprint confirmation to verify the suspect's identity. He is currently being held at Montgomery County Jail and faces first-degree murder charges.
A news conference was planned for Tuesday evening to provide further details about the case. If the arrested individual is confirmed as Oropesa, it will mark the conclusion of a massive search effort that involved over 250 law enforcement officers, the FBI, and an $80,000 reward for information.
The arrest occurred four days after the tragic event on Friday night, where the suspect allegedly entered a home in the Trails End area in Cleveland, about 45 miles north of Houston, and began shooting. The San Jacinto County Sheriff's Office reported that the attack was initiated after a neighbor complained about gunfire from Oropesa's property disturbing a baby's sleep.
According to Wilson Garcia, whose wife requested that Oropesa cease firing or relocate further from their home, the suspect responded by asserting his right to do as he pleased on his property. When Garcia's family threatened to call the police, Oropesa allegedly began insulting them.
The victims, all believed to be from Honduras, have been identified as 9-year-old Daniel Enrique Laso, 25-year-old Sonia Argentina Guzman, 21-year-old Diana Velazquez Alvarado, 31-year-old Julisa Molina Rivera, and 18-year-old Jose Jonathan Casarez. Garcia identified Laso as his son and Guzman as his wife and the child's mother.
The four adult victims were pronounced dead at the scene, while the 9-year-old died at the hospital. Three other children were found in the home and may have been protected by two women who shielded them with their bodies. It is believed that 15 rounds were fired during the attack.
The arrest took place in Cut and Shoot, a small community located around 16 miles west of the Cleveland area where the killings occurred. Prior to the arrest, investigators had been struggling with a lack of leads. The FBI had been examining various pieces of information, and digital billboards displaying Oropesa and the reward were set up in the Houston area. Plans to expand the billboards statewide were also in the works.
It remains unclear how Oropesa managed to evade the police for several days. On Saturday, searchers found the suspect's cellphone and some clothing, but scent-tracking dogs eventually lost his trail. Authorities have confiscated the rifle used in the attack but believe the suspect may still have been armed with a handgun.
Governor Greg Abbott revealed during a Sunday news conference that the suspect had been deported from the U.S. four times and was in Texas illegally. Numerous agencies, including FBI Houston, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Gulf Coast Violent Offenders Task Force, Texas Department of Public Safety, and the Texas Rangers, assisted in the search for Oropesa.
