Austin, Texas /
A man with a rifle and opened fire on his neighbors in Texas, murdered an eight-year-old boy and four other people, apparently from Honduras, according to authorities. The family had asked him to stop shoot in their yard because the noise kept them from sleeping.
The authorities They added that the suspect, “a Mexican,” was still on the run. Investigators believe the gunman was firing his AR-15 semi-automatic rifle in a neighboring yard when the victims asked him to stop as they were trying to put a baby to sleep, US media reported.
San Jacinto Sheriff Greg Capers said authorities were looking for the 39-year-old suspect after the massacre that occurred overnight in Cleveland, a town 45 miles (72 kilometers) north of Houston. He said the suspect, whom he did not identify, used an AR-15 rifle in the killing.
“Everyone was shot from the neck up, almost as if they were executed,” Capers told a news conference from the site.
The officer added that there were 10 people in the home and no one else was hurt. Two of the victims were lying on top of two children inside the house.
“The Honduran ladies lying on top of these children were trying to protect them,” Capers said.
Before the shooting, family members had walked to the fence separating the two homes to ask the suspect to stop firing rounds, Capers added. However, he replied that he was on his property, and a person in the house filmed him approaching the door with the rifle, added.
Three of the victims are women. Their names were not released. They were between 8 and 40 years old, Capers said.
The victims had been scattered from the front door through the house to an interior bedroom, where two of them – both women – were found on top of two children who survived the massacre.
“In my opinion, they were actually trying to protect the babies and keep them alive,” Capers told broadcaster KTRK.
All of the victims had been shot “from the neck up, almost execution style, basically to the head,” he added.
The suspect “had been drinking and said, ‘I’ll do whatever I want in my front yard,'” Capers explained to KTRK.
Authorities had previously gone to the suspect’s home, the sheriff said. “Agents had gone to talk to him about firing his gun in the yard,” narrowed.
Capers noted that some in the house had moved from Houston days before, but he didn’t know if they planned to settle there.
He indicated that the authorities believe they know who the attacker is, whom they described as a native of Mexico.
The sheriff’s office later reported on its Facebook page that the shooter was believed to have left the county.
Authorities asked residents to stay indoors until the man was apprehended, KTRK reported.
LG
2023-04-29 16:36:14
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