2023 Cleveland, Texas Shooting

On the night of April 28, 2023, at approximately 11:31 p.m. CDT, a mass shooting occurred at a residence about 6 miles northwest of Cleveland, in San Jacinto County, Texas, roughly 45 miles northeast of Houston. According to police reports, a neighbor had asked the suspect to stop firing his AR-15 rifle in his yard because it was disturbing a sleeping baby. The suspect reportedly refused, saying it was his own yard, and when the neighbor threatened to call police, the suspect retrieved his rifle, entered the neighbor's home, and opened fire. Four victims died at the scene; a nine-year-old boy was transported by ambulance to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. Three other minors were found covered in blood but were physically unharmed and were also taken to a hospital. A sheriff stated that all victims had been shot above the neck at close range, describing it as "almost execution style."

The five people killed were identified as Sonia Argentina Guzmán (25), Diana Velázquez Alvarado (21), Julisa Molina Rivera (31), José Jonathan Casárez (18), and Daniel Enrique Laso-Guzmán (9), all Honduran citizens. Texas Governor Greg Abbott drew criticism after referring to the victims as "illegal immigrants," a characterization widely viewed as insensitive since authorities had not officially disclosed the victims' immigration status; the husband of one victim said his wife had been a permanent U.S. resident.

Authorities identified the suspect as 38-year-old Francisco Oropeza, a Mexican national who had been deported from the United States four times between March 2009 and July 2016. He had lived in Cleveland since 2020 and had a history of firing his weapon outdoors, as well as a prior arrest record mainly for DWI. A four-day manhunt followed, involving the FBI's Houston field office, U.S. Marshals, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and BORTAC. A reward for his capture rose to $100,000. On May 2, 2023, Oropeza was found hiding in a closet under laundry in a house in Cut and Shoot, Texas, associated with a family member, following a tip to the FBI. He was apprehended at 6:30 p.m. CDT.

Shortly after his arrest, his wife, 52-year-old Divimara Lamar Nava, was taken into custody in connection with the shooting; police believed she had supplied him with food and clothing during the manhunt and had allegedly plotted an escape to Mexico with him.

On January 29, 2025, Oropeza pleaded guilty to the shooting and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. He is now incarcerated at the John B. Connally Unit. The shooting occurred eight days before an outlet mall shooting in Allen, Texas, contributing to increased scrutiny of gun laws in the state.