‘Conspiracy theories’ fly in Oropeza case, death penalty in play 

COLDSPRING — The battle to determine the fate of a Mexican national accused of fatally gunning down five neighbors including a child is heating up both in the courtroom and in the court of public opinion.  

During a status hearing Dec. 7 in the San Jacinto County Courthouse, prosecutors told 411th state District Judge John Wells they intended to seek the death penalty for Francisco Oropeza, 38.  

At the same time, both the state’s attorneys and Oropeza’s defense said outside social media — including billboards supporting Oropeza — could adversely affect the case before it goes to trial.  

The hearing last week was just the latest chapter in the case against Oropeza, who in August pleaded not guilty to the April 15 killings of Jonathan Casarez, 18, Julisa Molina Rivera, 31, Diana Velasquez Alvarado, 21, Daniel Enrique Las-Guzman, 9, and his mother, Sonia Argentina Guzman, 25, in the Trails End Subdivision near Cleveland.  

Investigators believe the bloodbath started with a noise complaint when a man kept firing his gun late at night and neighbors asked him to stop.  

The homicides sparked a four-day manhunt that ended with Oropeza found hiding under a dirty pile of laundry at a relative's home in nearby Cut and Shoot. At the time of his arrest, authorities identified Oropeza as an undocumented immigrant hailing from Mexico.  

During the hearing Dec. 7, prosecutors asked family members of the accused to refrain from dispensing over social media what they termed was defamatory information.  

At that same discussion, Anthony Osso, a well-known Houston defense attorney representing Oropeza, noted that signs supporting the defendant in neighboring Montgomery County where Oropeza lived had nothing to do with Osso or his law firm.  

The signs demanded a fair trial for the suspect and had been the center of some controversy, with residents tearing them down.  

Following the hearing, Osso and his legal team met with reporters outside the courthouse, fielding questions about social media and addressing the toll it can take on a court proceeding.  

“Sometimes it can adversely affect our client because there’s a lot of conspiracy theories that are floating around,” Osso said.  

The attorney also took aim at social-media posts targeting his client, saying the posts come from individuals with no direct personal knowledge of the incident or any contact with the principals involved.  

“They are just jumping on the fire that is being fueled,” Osso said, “However, if someone has credible information that they have personal knowledge of, we are open; we are not closing the door to anyone that wants to provide legitimate information that will help our client.”  

He said ill-informed comments both on social platforms and in news reports can have a chilling impact on the impartiality of a judicial proceeding, hinting he may seek a change of venue.  

“There’s a possibility that this case will have to be moved outside of this jurisdiction because of some of the things that are transpiring,” Osso said.  

Some of the social-media posts in support of Oropeza are asking that the victims themselves— many of them originally from Honduras — be investigated, claiming accounts from surviving family members of what happened have changed several times.  

“I know there's people saying that the victims need to be investigated. That’s not our responsibility. That’s the responsibility of the District Attorney’s Office,” Osso said.  

A small group supporting Oropeza was on hand, with Marta Gomez and Luis Guerrero calling for a fair trial and further investigation, including the events leading up to the mass shooting.  

“What we are concerned with is what the (survivors) are saying on social media, and they are always changing the stories,” Gomez said. “We’re concerned about a fair trial.”  

Gomez and Guerrero said statements by Gov. Greg Abbott about immigrants, including about both Oropeza and the shooting victims, led them to organize in a show of solidarity for newcomers to the country.  

“That concerned me when this happened,” Gomez said.  

Guerrero said the group, which has members across the state, also had concerns about actions at the crime scene prior to the arrival of law enforcement.  

If there is more to the case than meets the eye, “How come there are no more arrests, how come no one else is detained?” Guerrero said.  

During the hearing, Osso told the court his office is still awaiting additional evidence during the discovery phase prior to trial, and it will take some time before the defense is ready to argue the case.  

“The way things are moving along right now, I’m not seeing anything before mid-2025,” Osso said.  

Attorneys are expected back in court April 18, 2024.