A grieving man whose family fell victim to a Cleveland, Texas shooting desperately called 911 five times in a frantic attempt to avert the tragedy.
Wilson Garcia, the bereaved father, recounted his repeated pleas for help after politely asking 38-year-old Francisco Oropesa, an armed fugitive, to stop firing his gun in the neighborhood late at night, as his infant child was trying to sleep.
Despite Garcia’s pleas, Oropesa callously refused to comply. Garcia watched in horror as Oropesa loaded his AR-style rifle and charged toward their house. Fearful for his family’s safety, Garcia urgently urged his wife to seek shelter indoors. Tragically, she became the first victim of the rampage.
Amidst the chaos, Garcia shared how one of the women inside the house begged him to escape through a window, urging him to survive and care for his motherless children. Garcia managed to evade the bullets, defying the gunman’s attempts to harm him.
The massacre victims included Garcia’s wife, Sonia Guzman, 25, his son Daniel Enrique Laso, 9, Diana Velazquez Alvarado, 21, Julisa Molina Rivera, 31, and Jose Jonathan Casarez, 18. Police believe the victims, who sustained fatal gunshot wounds above the neck, were all from Honduras. Police found three children in the home who miraculously remained unharmed during the shooting despite being covered in blood.
Speaking to reporters, Garcia expressed his disbelief that his neighbor would turn violent toward him and his family, saying that he had never had any issues with Oropesa and had barely interacted with him during their time as neighbors.
In response to the devastating incident, law enforcement agencies, involving more than 200 officers from various jurisdictions, did an intensive search for the at-large suspect. Despite initial leads, authorities faced challenges in finding him. However, doorbell camera footage and a Mexican government identity card proved instrumental in identifying Oropesa, who had previously been reported for discharging firearms in the area and had been deported several times.
The massive manhunt finally came to an end on Tuesday, May 2, when the FBI received a tip at around 5:15 pm and found the suspect hiding in a closet under laundry in a house several miles away from the scene of the crime.
At a press conference, FBI Special Agent Jimmy Paul thanked the person who tipped them off for their courage and bravery in making the call. Greg Capers, San Jacinto County Sheriff, called the suspect a coward and expressed his gratitude to all the people from various agencies as well as the media and general public who helped bring about the arrest of the fugitive.
Sheriff Capers said that Oropesa is being charged with the murder of five people. His bond has been set at $5 million.
