A 38-year-old Mexican national suspected of killing five neighbors in southeast Texas after one of them asked him to stop shooting his rifle because a baby was trying to sleep, was indicted Friday for capital murder of multiple people.
Francisco Oropeza had been deported several times prior to the deadly Cleveland, Texas, attack back in April.
The capital murder indictment is an addition to the five counts of murder Oropeza was indicted on in May.
San Jacinto County District Attorney Todd Dillon told the Associated Press it is a little too early to decide whether they will seek the death penalty against the suspect.
Oropeza’s attorney, Anthony Osso, said his client will plead not guilty, adding that his team expected the capital indictment.
Oropesa is accused of using an AR-15 to kill four adults — 25-year-old Sonia Argentina Guzman, 21-year-old Diana Velazquez Alvarado, 31-year-old Julisa Molina Rivera, and 18-year-old Jose Jonathan Casarez — as well as one child, 9-year-old Daniel Enrique Laso Guzman.
The suspect fled the neighborhood after the shooting, sparking a manhunt that came up dry for days, despite over 250 officers, drones and scent tracking dogs searching, and an $80,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Oropeza.
After a five-day manhunt, U.S. Marshals, Texas Department of Public Safety and the U.S. Border Patrol’s BORTAC team apprehended Oropeza without incident on May 3.
He was found hiding under a pile of laundry in the closet of a home about 20 miles from where the shooting took place.
In addition to the arrest of Oropeza, the suspect’s domestic partner and a friend were also charged with hindering the apprehension or prosecution of a known felon.
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