The culprit in the Texas mass shooting that killed five people has been named as 38-year-old Francisco Oropeza.
After the shooting in a home in the Trails End area of San Jacinto County, Texas, five people were killed, including an eight-year-old child.
According to officials, two female victims were located in the bedroom, laying on top of two surviving children.
Sheriff Greg Capers stated that numerous fatalities, all from the same family, were discovered shot “execution style” inside the family home.
According to police, they urged the suspect to cease shooting his firearm because they were attempting to put their infant to sleep.
Sheriff Greg Capers of San Jacinto County said officials were still looking for the 39-year-old suspect after the nighttime shooting in Cleveland, approximately 45 miles (72 km) north of Houston.
He stated that the suspect, whom he could not name, shot with an AR-style weapon.
A large police presence was seen at the location.
The event began with a harassing call to 911 shortly after 11.30 p.m. on Friday night.
According to Capers, the altercation began when family members approached the fence and asked the suspect to cease shooting shots.
According to Capers, the suspect answered by informing them that it was his property, and that one individual in the home had video of the guy stepping up to the front door with the gun.
When police came, they discovered two ladies dead in the front garden and a male dead in the living room.
Sheriff Capers stated of the ladies, “In my opinion, they were actually trying to take care of the babies and keep them babies alive.”
Three of the victims were female, while one was male. Their identities were not revealed. Capers stated that the victims ranged in age from 8 to 40 years old.
According to Capers, authorities had already visited the suspect’s residence. “Deputies have come over and spoken with him about him shooting his gun in the yard,” he explained.
Capers said some of those in the house had just moved from Houston earlier in the week, but he did not know whether they were planning to stay there.
“The Mexican male subject, he has been known to shoot his 223 out in his front yard, which is evident by the shell casings that are laying in the front yard,” said the San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office.
Montgomery County SWAT rushed to the scene and cleared several properties around the crime scene. Police believes he has fled the county.
The US is setting a record pace for mass killings in 2023.
The violence is sparked by a range of motives: murder-suicides and domestic violence; gang retaliation; school shootings and workplace vendettas. All have taken the lives of four or more people at once since Jan. 1.
