Diana Velazquez Alvarado was a 21-year-old Hispanic mother who had come to the United States from Honduras with dreams of becoming a cosmetologist. On the night of April 28, 2023, her life was cut short in a burst of violence at her home in Cleveland, Texas. The tragedy began when a neighbor, 38-year-old Francisco Oropeza, started firing an AR-15 rifle in his yard. Family members went to his home to ask him to stop because the noise was upsetting a baby who was trying to sleep. Oropeza, who had reportedly been drinking, refused, allegedly telling them, "I'll do what I want to in my front yard."
Moments later, Oropeza entered his neighbors' home and began shooting. He killed five people, all of whom were from Honduras. The victims were identified as Diana Velazquez Alvarado; Sonia Argentina Guzman, 25; Julisa Molina Rivera, 31; José Jonathan Casarez, 18; and Sonia's nine-year-old son, Daniel Enrique Laso.
Authorities described the scene as an "execution-style" massacre, noting that all the victims were shot from the neck up. In her final moments, Diana Velazquez Alvarado was found shielding several children who survived the attack. Julisa Molina Rivera also died protecting young children from the gunfire.
Oropeza fled after the shooting, sparking a tense, four-day manhunt that involved multiple local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies. Investigators found his abandoned phone and some clothing as they scoured the heavily wooded area near the crime scene. The search ended on May 2, 2023, when authorities, acting on a tip, found Oropeza hiding under a pile of laundry in a house in Conroe, Texas.
Following his capture, Francisco Oropeza was indicted by a grand jury on capital murder charges. His partner, Divimara Nava, was also arrested and charged with hindering the apprehension of a known felon. She was accused of helping Oropeza evade capture by hiding him at a relative’s home.
The case came to a close in January 2025 when Francisco Oropeza pleaded guilty to capital murder for the deaths of his five neighbors. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
