FBI has ‘zero leads’ in search for suspect of Texas family shooting, agency says
Rachel Schilke
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The FBI in Houston, Texas, said investigators have “zero leads” as to the whereabouts of the suspect in the fatal shooting of five people, including a 9-year-old.
Francisco Oropeza, 38, is accused of going next door to his neighbors’ home in Cleveland, Texas, with an AR-15 rifle and shooting the family members “execution-style” on Friday night after the neighbors asked him to stop shooting his gun in the backyard because they were trying to sleep.
FBI ASSISTING IN SEARCH FOR SUSPECT IN KILLING OF FAMILY OF FIVE IN TEXAS
Oropeza fled from police, leading to a manhunt for his arrest. He is charged with five counts of murder. However, the FBI is not any closer to finding him than it was at the beginning of the search.
“I can tell you right now, we have zero leads,” James Smith, the FBI special agent in charge, told reporters on Monday.
The FBI and local authorities have jointly offered up to $80,000 in rewards for any information leading to Oropeza’s location. Over 250 law enforcement officers from over a dozen agencies are actively searching for Oropeza, the agency said.
Oropeza allegedly shot and killed five of the 10 people living in the home next door to his, and authorities had made visits to his home about shooting his gun in his yard, San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said on Saturday.
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, 9, whom authorities originally said was 8 years old. Two of the victims were found in a bedroom laying over two children in an apparent attempt to shield them, Capers said.
All five of the victims are believed to be from Honduras, but investigators do not believe those at the home were all members of a single family.
Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) announced a $50,000 reward for information leading to Oropeza’s capture. He called Oropeza and the five victims “illegal immigrants,” but the immigration statuses of the victims have not been confirmed by police.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement records indicate that Oropeza, whose full name is Francisco Oropeza Perez-Torres, is a Mexican national who has been deported multiple times back to Mexico. An immigration judge ordered his removal in March 2009, and ICE agents apprehended and removed Oropeza several more times by the agency in September 2009, January 2012, and July 2016.
Oropeza was also previously convicted in Montgomery, Texas, of driving while intoxicated in January 2012 and sentenced to jail time.
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Abbott said he directed Operation Lone Star soldiers and troopers to be on the lookout if Oropeza tries to leave the country.
“Our hearts go out to the families and loved ones of the five victims that were taken in this senseless act of violence,” Abbott said. “I continue working with state and local officials to ensure they have all available resources to respond to this horrific crime.”