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MANHUNT: Suspect in Texas slaughter of 5 is three-time deported illegal immigrant from Mexico

May 1, 2023 | | Print Article

A manhunt is underway in Texas for a 38-year-old Mexican national who has been deported three times from the United States.

Francisco Oropesa is wanted for allegedly shooting five of his Cleveland, Texas, neighbors in the head after they asked him to stop firing his gun because they had a sleeping baby.

One of the victims was an 8-year-old boy.

Oropesa was deported by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) three times on separate incidents, San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers told Breitbart Texas on Sunday. The last time ICE deported him was in 2016.

Victims Sonia Argentina Guzman, 25; Diana Velazquez Alvarado, 21; Julisa Molina Rivera, 31; and Jonathan Casarez, 18, were found dead at the scene. Daniel Enrique Lase, 8, was transported to a local hospital, where he, too, died.

Some of the adults died while shielding other young children who did survive and were taken to the hospital.

All of Oropesa’s neighbors were from Honduras.

Speaking at a press conference on Saturday afternoon, Sheriff Capers announced that the FBI, the U.S. Marshal’s Office, Montgomery and Harris County Sheriff’s Offices, and other agencies are involved in the manhunt for Oropesa.

“Our number one priority,” Capers said, “has been to locate this suspect and put him behind bars where he belongs.”


(Video: YouTube)

FBI Special Agent in Charge James Smith warned that the suspect is armed and dangerous.

“We’re still out there trying to find this individual,” he said. “We consider him armed and dangerous and we’re not going to stop until we actually arrest him and bring him into custody.”

According to Capers, “He could be anywhere now.”

The sheriff indicated that they believed they had the murder weapon in their possession, but said Oropesa may have another, smaller weapon on him. They had also recovered Oropesa’s cell phone and some discarded clothing. Tracking dogs lost the suspect’s scent when he entered a waterway.

On Sunday, Capers said they believed the fugitive had left the immediate area and was at least 10 to 20 miles from the scene.

(Video: YouTube)

Family members of the victims, Jefferson Rivera and Wilson Garcia, spoke to Fox26 about the horrifying incident.

“This tragedy that unfolded, he had no right,” Rivera said. “We never offended him. We never disrespected him.”

Oropesa was allegedly drunk and shooting off an AR-15 outside his home when his neighbors asked him to stop as he was scaring the children.

“I told my wife to go inside because he had loaded the gun,” Garcia said.

Oropesa then forced himself inside the house and shot Garcia’s wife, Sonya.


(Video: YouTube)

“That’s when my friend told me to run,” Garcia continued. “‘Sonya is dead. You have two kids. Run. We will take care of ourselves.'”

“So, that’s when I went through the window,” the grieving man explained.

When Garcia returned a short time later, Oropesa was still inside the home.

“That’s when the suspect shot at me,” Garcia said. “He shot at me five times behind my house. When he didn’t catch me, he returned to gun them down again and shot them in the head.”

Authorities are offering a $130,000 reward for information leading to Oropesa’s capture.

Melissa Fine
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