Texas Shooter Somehow Evades Police

A man suspected of using an assault rifle to kill five people outside of Houston continued to evade law enforcement over the weekend.


Authorities said Sunday afternoon that Francisco Oropesa, 38, appeared to have slipped past a 2-mile dragnet of more than 150 law enforcement officers in Cleveland, Texas, about 45 miles north of Houston, on Saturday.


More than 250 officers were continuing the search on Sunday.


The officials said that Oropesa is suspected of opening fire on his neighbors after one complained that shots from his adjacent property were keeping an infant from sleeping.


Oropesa may have been drunk before the attack.


Shawn Crawford, a neighbor who knows Oropesa and the victims, described the community as family oriented and the suspect as a family guy. Crawford said that he has never seen a fight, argument, raise his voice, or anything like that.


He said that complaints about gunfire in the past were easy to address. Sheriff Greg Capers acknowledged previous reports of gunfire, which he said might not have been illegal depending on the size of his property.


The suspect’s disappearance would appear to be a result of the characterization of an even-handed family man. Law enforcement agents said they were in contact with Oropesa’s wife but had no leads beyond his contact with someone Saturday afternoon. James Smith, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Houston-area office, said at a news conference that they were running into dead ends.


Capers said his heart was with the little boy who died. “I don’t care if he was in the country illegally. He was in my county. Five people died in my county, and that’s where my heart is, protecting our people to the best of our ability.”


A $25,000 pledge from the FBI boosted the reward money for information leading to the apprehension of the suspect to $80,000.


As law enforcement went door to door to look for security video or tips that might lead to the suspect, the FBI withdrew a photo that had been released and distributed several new images, including one of a tattoo on the suspect’s forearm, to help the public recognize and report him. He said that they moved quickly to remove the photo.


According to authorities, Oropesa marched to his neighbors’ residence with a semi-automatic rifle and aimed at them with determination.


Capers pushed back at a Saturday news conference when a reporter suggested victims may have been sprayed with gunfire. He said that all of them were in an execution style.


He described the shooter’s actions as they were known to investigators. The man walked out of his house with a loaded rifle, walked down the street, walked into the man’s driveway and started shooting.
The four adult victims were dead at the scene, while the 9-year-old died at a hospital. Some children may have been saved by two women who draped their bodies over them.


The community is in fear and mourning after five people were killed in a shooting rampage at a rural Texas home.


More than 250 officers, including the FBI and a dozen surrounding law enforcement agencies, are involved in the search for Francisco Oropeza, 38, the alleged suspect in Friday’s shooting near the town of Cleveland, about 45 miles north of Houston.


During a news conference on Sunday, authorities said they had no leads on Oropeza. We don’t know where he is.


James Smith, FBI Houston Special Agent in Charge, told reporters that authorities are unsure if the suspect is still in the area. “We’ve personnel from federal, state, and local agencies trying to bring this subject into custody so we can bring justice to those five victims and their families,” Smith said. Smith pleaded for the public’s help “so that we can bring this monster to justice.”


Sheriff Greg Capers told reporters that officers are going door-to-door looking for information. He hopes the increased $80,000 reward will encourage people to think about Oropeza.


The wife of Oropeza is cooperating with investigators as they try to find out what happened to the victims. Capers said it was his number one priority to find the suspect.


Smith said during Sunday’s news conference that the FBI initially released the wrong suspect’s photo. Smith said that they acted quickly to remove the photo.


We looked at what we had, and now we’re confident that we have the right photo.


The owner of the home where the tragedy unfolded told KTRK-TV that his wife and son were killed in the attack. He said he had no problems with his neighbor before he moved in three years ago. The family was preparing a meal when the suspect started shooting. He told the man he was going to call the police. “We asked him not to shoot there because my baby was scared,” she said.


He said his wife was shot on the porch. The man said the man went from room to room looking for people. He said the man fired at him multiple times, but missed. “He came shooting inside the house, it’s horrible, it’s appalling.”