Search for Texas shooting suspect widens as bounty hits $80k for five murders

“We don’t have to live this way; we don’t have to die this way,” the Everytown for Gun Safety Twitter profile tweeted on Saturday, following the senseless massacre in Cleveland, Texas.

A widening search for a Texas gunman who fatally shot five neighbors continued without results Sunday as officers knocked on doors, the FBI appearing no closer to catching the killer after nearly two days of searching with a team that it has grown to hundreds of people.

“I can tell you right now that we have no leads,” James Smith, the FBI special agent in charge, told reporters as he again appealed to the public for leads in the rural Cleveland town where the shooting occurred just before midnight on Friday.

The search for the gunman near Houston has grown in scale: Authorities said last night more than 200 police officers from multiple jurisdictions were searching for Francisco Oropesa, many going door-to-door hoping to find any leads to the 38-year-old suspect.

Local officials and the FBI also provided reward money, bringing the total to $80,000 for any information on Oropesa’s whereabouts.

San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said authorities expanded the search area beyond the scene of the shooting, which occurred after the suspect’s neighbors asked him to stop shooting in their yard late in the morning. the night because a baby was trying to sleep.

The San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI have said Francisco Oropeza, 38, “could be anywhere” more than 24 hours after he allegedly opened fire on his next-door neighbors when they complained that He was shooting bullets in his garden.

The victims were identified on Sunday as Sonia Argentina Guzmán, 25, her eight-year-old son, Daniel Enrique Laso, Diana Velázquez Alvarado, 21, Julisa Molina Rivera, 31, and Josué Jonatán Cáceres, 18, according to 12 Noticias. . Several children were in the house when the violence broke out.

On Sunday night, the FBI said in a statement that Oropeza is considered armed and dangerous and the public is advised not to approach him.

SJCSO Greg Capers said Mr. Oropeza “could be anywhere,” adding that investigators found a cell phone and clothing believed to belong to Mr. Oropeza. Texas Department of Corrections K-9 units “picked up a scent and then…lost that scent into the water,” according to Fox News.

Authorities have continued to search the immediate vicinity of the crime scene. Capers said authorities had expanded the search to 20 miles (32 kilometers) from the shooting site.

The San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI have said Francisco Oropeza, 38, “could be anywhere” more than 24 hours after he allegedly opened fire on his next-door neighbors when they complained that He was shooting bullets in his garden.

Previous NPR reports suggested that police had located and surrounded the suspect somewhere in the Houston area, but an update Saturday night from the SJCSO indicated that Mr. Oropeza is still on the run. On Sunday night, the FBI said in a declaration that Mr. Oropeza is considered armed and dangerous and the public is advised not to approach him.

SJCSO Greg Capers said Mr. Oropeza “could be anywhere,” adding that investigators found a cell phone and clothing believed to belong to Mr. Oropeza. Texas Department of Corrections K-9 units “picked up a scent and then…lost that scent into the water,” according to Fox News.

Enrique Reina, Honduran secretary of Foreign Relations and International Cooperation, said on Twitter that the Honduran Consulate in Houston was contacting the families regarding the repatriation of the remains, as well as US authorities to keep them informed about the investigation.

Conservatives like to paint Democratic states as crime-ridden war zones, but gun violence is worse in Red states. the independentJosh Markus writes:

The shooting was reported around 10:30 p.m. in the 100 block of Walters Road in the Trails End area of ​​the community about 45 miles (72 kilometers) northeast of Houston. Night shift patrol officers were dispatched to a residence in reference to a harassment complaint.

The house where the shooting occurred

On their way there, they received multiple 911 calls of an active shooter incident at the dispatch location. Three children covered in blood were transported to the hospital, where they were determined to be uninjured, while two other witnesses at the scene were evaluated by first responders and released.

The SJCSO also said that Mr. Oropeza “has been known to fire his 223 in his front yard, which is evident from shell casings found in the front yard.”

The suspected shooter, Francisco Oropesa, 38, was considered armed and dangerous after fleeing the area Friday, likely on foot, San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said Saturday night. He said authorities had expanded the search to 20 miles (32 kilometers) from the shooting site.

Investigators found clothing and a phone while combing a rural area that includes dense layers of forest, but sniffer dogs lost their trail, Capers said.

Authorities were able to identify Oropesa through an identity card issued by Mexican authorities to citizens residing outside the country, as well as doorbell camera footage. He said the police also interviewed the suspect’s wife.

FBI Special Agent James Smith was confronted by reporters who pointed out that the FBI had released the photo of a man other than Mr. Oropesa in connection with the investigation, prompting the media to use the person’s photo wrong.

Police also first said the suspect’s last name was Oropeza, but have since corrected the spelling.

“In an investigation like this, we are receiving information from a large number of agencies and citizens,” explained Mr. Smith. “This was an error on our part, we identified it and worked quickly to remove it.”