Manhunt continues for Texas shooting suspect, reward offered

• May 1, 2023

By Juan A. Lozano | Associated Press

CLEVELAND, Texas — Law enforcement officers said Sunday they’ve been unable to find a gunman who fled after killing five people in a rural Texas town, offering $80,000 in total reward money in hopes of motivating someone to come forward with information about the suspect’s whereabouts.

“We do not know where he is,” said James Smith, the FBI’s special agent in charge. Police were going door to door looking for the suspect.

The suspect, Francisco Oropesa, 38, was considered armed and dangerous after fleeing the area Friday, likely on foot, San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said late Saturday. He said authorities had widened the search to 20 miles (32 kilometers) from the scene of the shooting, which occurred after the suspect’s neighbors asked him to stop firing off rounds in his yard.

Investigators found clothes and a phone while combing a rural area that includes dense layers of forest, but tracking dogs lost the scent, Capers said. Authorities were able to identify Oropesa by an identity card issued by Mexican authorities to citizens who reside outside the country, as well as doorbell camera footage. He said police have also interviewed the suspect’s wife.

Police recovered the AR-15-style rifle that Oropesa allegedly used in the shootings but authorities were not sure if he was carrying another weapon, the sheriff said. There were other weapons in the suspect’s home, he said.

“He could be anywhere now,” Capers said on Saturday.

The attack happened near the town of Cleveland, north of Houston, on a street where some residents say neighbors often unwind by firing off guns.

It was a much quieter scene Sunday. Police crime scene tape had been removed from around the victims’ home. Some people stopped by to leave flowers.

An FBI agent, several Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and other officers could be seen walking around the neighborhood, going door-to-door and trying to speak with neighbors. The agent and officers declined to comment about what they were doing.

As the troopers were speaking to residents at one house, a red truck pulling a travel trailer drove through the neighborhood. One trooper stopped the truck and asked the driver, “Mind if I take a look inside the truck?”

The driver agreed and allowed the trooper to go inside the vehicle. After inspecting the trailer, the trooper let the driver continue on his way.

Veronica Pineda, 34, who lives across the street from the suspect’s home, said authorities asked if they could search her property to see if he might be hiding there.

“That’s good for them to do that,” said the mother of five, adding that she remained fearful because the gunman hasn’t yet been captured.

“It is kind of scary. You never know where he can be. I don’t think he will be here anymore,” she said.

She said she didn’t know Oropesa well but occasionally saw him, his wife and son ride their horses on the street and believes the family have lived there five or six years. Pineda said neighbors have called authorities in the past to complain about the firing of weapons.

The victims of Friday’s shooting were between the ages of 8 and 31 years old and all were believed to be from Honduras, Capers said. All were shot “from the neck up,” he said. A GoFundMe page was set up to repatriate the bodies of two victims, a mother and son, to their native country.

Enrique Reina, Honduras’ secretary of foreign affairs and international cooperation, said on Twitter that the Honduran Consulate in Houston was contacting the families in connection with the repatriation of remains as well as U.S. authorities to keep apprised of the investigation.

The suspect’s last name was originally given as Oropeza by authorities, but the FBI in Houston said in a Tweet on Sunday that it was now referring to him as Oropesa to “better reflect his identity in law enforcement systems.” The FBI said the case “remains a fluid investigation.”

The attack was the latest act of gun violence in what has been a record pace of mass shootings in the U.S. so far this year, some of which have also involved semiautomatic rifles.

Capers said there were 10 people in the house — some of whom had just moved there earlier in the week — but no one else was injured. He said two of the victims were found in a bedroom laying over two children in an apparent attempt to shield them.

A total of three children found covered in blood in the home were taken to a hospital but found to be uninjured, Capers said.

FBI spokesperson Christina Garza said investigators do not believe those at the home were members of a single family. The victims were identified as Sonia Argentina Guzman, 25; Diana Velazquez Alvarado, 21; Julisa Molina Rivera, 31; Jose Jonathan Casarez, 18; and Daniel Enrique Laso, 8.

The confrontation came after the neighbors walked up to a fence and asking the suspect to stop shooting rounds, Capers said. He said the suspect responded by telling them that it was his property. Doorbell video captured him walking up to the front door with a rifle.

The shooting took place on a rural pothole-riddled street where single-story homes sit on 1-acre lots and are surrounded by a thick canopy of trees. A horse could be seen behind the victims’ home, while in the front yard of Oropesa’s house a dog and chickens wandered about.

Rene Arevalo Sr., who lives a few houses down, said he heard gunshots around midnight but didn’t think anything of it.

“It’s a normal thing people do around here, especially on Fridays after work,” Arevalo said. “They get home and start drinking in their backyards and shooting out there.”

Associated Press Writer Susan Haigh in Norwich, Connecticut, contributed to this report.

​ Orange County Register 

Stagecoach 2023: What vegetarians can eat at the barbecue-focused festival

• May 1, 2023

Grilled and smoked meats at the Stagecoach Country Music Festival are a really big deal.

Restaurateur and TV personality Guy Fieri has been manning the Stagecoach Smokehouse now for several years and it has become quiet the spectacle. He brings the heat by hosting cooking demos with pitmasters from across the country and has a good time creating outrageous barbecued meals — like a mac and cheeseburger that included a whopping six pound meat patty — with some of the festival’s Mane Stage talent, too.

But what if you’re a vegetarian or vegan attending this mostly meat-focused fiesta?

Although it’s a stark contrast from the wide variety of eats available during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, there are options for those seeking a plant-based bite or a non-meat dish at Stagecoach.

Here’s some of the vegetarian and vegan food we tried during the three-day festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio.

Monty’s Good Burger

The all plant-based spot is slinging chicken tenders and hamburgers all weekend long. The Los Angeles-based joint makes sure to give each customer a cute box with the famous Monty’s dog logo, that also happens to be sporting a cowboy hat for the event. The tenders or burgers come in the box with fries and a handful of crispy tater tots. Each meal also includes a drink and a sauce of choice. Meals start at $21 per box.

Delmys Pupusas

The Salvadoran eatery brings a modern twist in serving pupusas for a variety of diets. Vegetarian options include beans and cheese and vegan pupusas, including farmer’s market veggies and beans. Regardless of the pupusa chosen, each comes with pickled cabbage, caliente salsa and crema. Meals start at $16.

Mac Shack

Serving simple, quick easy bites, the Mac Shack has white cheddar mac and cheese bowls that are reasonable in price. The bowls are filled to the brim with shell pasta and creamy cheese. Meals start at $11.50.

Juniors Munchies

Junior Munchies is the place to hit when attendees are craving a hot corn on the cob. The joint also has esquites, the off-the-cob version of elotes, in a big cup. The esquites and cobs come with butter and parmesan. If vegans want a little something, just let the workers know, and they’ll happily remove the dairy. There’s also a bar with hot sauce, lemon juice, chamoy and other amenities for taste. Meals start at $7.

Heritage Mediterranean Grill

One of the best options for vegetarians, Heritage serves up falafels and rice bowls that are equally large in size and tasty. The falafel sandwiches and bowls come with sliced cucumbers, tomato, red onion, and feta cheese. Plant-based attendees can also grab a bowl without the cheese and dairy. Meals start at $20.

 Spicy Pie

“I Love Spicy Pie” is a well-known slogan on the pizza boxes that come with each order. This is a festival food staple and guests can snag plain cheese and veggies.  Additionally, there is a vegan option, but it needs to be requested and they tend to run out quickly. Prices start at $12.

 More Stagecoach Country Music Festival news

Stagecoach 2023: 5 fun non-music activities to do at the festival 

Stagecoach 2023: Ready to party, yet stay sober? There’s a tent for that

Stagecoach 2023: See photos of performers and fans from Day 2

Stagecoach 2023: Kane Brown, Bryan Adams and Nelly close out Day 2

Stagecoach 2023: Guy Fieri, Jon Pardi toss barbecued turkey legs to hungry fans 

Stagecoach 2023: Trixie Mattel slays Late Night in Palomino performance 

Stagecoach 2023: See photos of performers and fans from Day 1

Stagecoach 2023: Luke Bryan keeps fans singing, Jon Pardi gets a surprise on stage during Day 1

Stagecoach 2023: Country music fans, performers brave the heat and cut loose during Day 1

Stagecoach 2023: How to livestream the country music festival from home

Stagecoach 2023: Brooks & Dunn return to the desert and they’re ready to party 

Stagecoach 2023: Everything you need to know about the country music fest 

Stagecoach 2023: Guy Fieri’s barbecue, sushi and lots of drinks on the menu 

​ Orange County Register 

Fire at Barnes & Noble in Orange disrupts book-signing event

• May 1, 2023

A book-signing event at a Barnes & Noble in Orange was cut short on Saturday, April 29, after a fire broke out inside the business, leading to the store’s closure for the foreseeable future.

Author and photographer, Maggie St. Thomas, was performing a reading of her new book, “Still Life: The Photographs of Maggie St. Thomas,” to a crowd inside the book store, on the 700 block of South Main Street, when the fire broke out some time around 5 p.m., according to Orange Deputy Fire Marshal Robert Prendergast. Customers and staff were evacuated from the store and no injuries were reported.

The fire quickly grew to a second alarm, with about 45 personnel from Orange County Fire Authority, Anaheim Fire & Rescue and Orange Police called in to assist with the fire.

The blaze was contained around 9 p.m., Prendergast said.

The cause of the fire and an estimate of the damage were under investigation on Sunday.

The Barnes & Noble store was closed on Sunday and would remain so until further notice, the bookseller announced on Instagram.

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​ Orange County Register 

Westminster commemorates Black April

• May 1, 2023

Westminster leaders and community members commemorated Black April on Sunday, marking the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, after years of war.

Millions of Vietnamese refugees fled the country, mostly in in boats, to escape the advance of the communist regime following the fall of South Vietnam. Many found their way to Orange County.

Vietnamese Americans in Little Saigon, now home to the largest Vietnamese population outside of Vietnam, spent the day Sunday in reflection at Westminster’s Sid Goldstein Freedom Park.

Related: OC lawmakers commemorate Black April with congressional resolution

The event, a somber occasion, featured a wreath ceremony and performances, including the singing of national anthems and a remembrance song for fallen and unknown soldiers.

Organizers planned for about 200 people to attend Sunday’s event. Westminster was the first city to recognize Black April Memorial Week, it says on its website.

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​ Orange County Register 

Dodgers complete sweep of Cardinals with resourceful offense

• May 1, 2023

LOS ANGELES — Their baby boom having passed, the Dodgers’ welcomed a new arrival — momentum.

Using eight walks, three stolen bases and situational hitting instead of home runs to fuel the offense, they completed a three-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals with a 6-3 victory Sunday afternoon.

The three-game winning streak matches their longest this season. But it is their second in the past eight games, moving them three games over .500 (16-13) — also matching a season-high — for the first time since they started the season 5-2.

“I just feel like we’re playing better baseball together instead of one facet good, one facet not. It’s just nice to see it all come together for a few games,” said Freddie Freeman who had one of the Dodgers’ walks and one of the stolen bases.

“We would like to have put this together a lot quicker than we did but we have been playing better baseball the last few days. Obviously losing Will (Smith) for awhile with his concussion, everyone felt like having babies at the same time – it’s just nice to get everybody back together again and obviously play some good baseball.”

A lineup fortified by the returns of Max Muncy and Smith this weekend (even as J.D. Martinez went on the Injured List) proved more resourceful than explosive with the bottom half of the lengthened lineup doing much of the MacGyvering Sunday.

Jason Heyward torched a double to right-center field leading off the second. Ground outs to the right side by James Outman and Miguel Vargas got him over and got him in.

In the fourth, Heyward and Outman led off with back-to-back walks. Again, two ground outs moved them over and brought Heyward home. Chris Taylor’s two-out double down the left-field line drove in a second run.

“I felt like we manufactured all the runs today. Get ‘em over, get ‘em in. That was nice,” Freeman said. “You can’t always win games by hitting home runs.”

Indeed, Taylor’s double was the Dodgers’ only run-scoring hit of the day. They won despite going 1 for 15 with runners in scoring position. Instead, four runs were driven in by outs and another scored on a wild pitch.

“It was a clinic in team offense,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.

Dodgers starter Noah Syndergaard put on a different kind of clinic. The right-hander who once had a fastball that exploded on hitters is now reduced to walking carefully through a minefield every start.

Nothing exploded on him Sunday. But he gave up seven balls with exit velocity exceeding 100 mph while getting just two swings-and-misses through the first five innings. He left after 5⅓ having given up eight hits while striking out no one.

“It doesn’t really matter to me,” Syndergaard said. “I’m more focused on just getting outs.”

He left with the 5-3 lead — and wound up getting his first win as a Dodger — thanks to another spare-parts rally by the Dodgers’ offense in the fifth.

Smith’s leadoff double — a popup down the right field line that first baseman Brendan Donovan gloved but dropped — was the only hit of the two-run inning. Muncy and Heyward followed with back-to-back walks to load the bases.

One run scored on a wild pitch by Cardinals reliever Drew VerHagen and another when the Cardinals couldn’t turn a double play on David Peralta’s ground ball.

The Dodgers’ bullpen took over in the sixth inning and Roberts used five relievers to protect the lead the rest of the way. After Tommy Edman led off the sixth inning with a double off Syndergaard and scored on Lars Nootbaar’s RBI single, the Cardinals didn’t get another runner past first base against the Dodgers’ bullpen.

The Dodgers entered the weekend with a 5.18 bullpen ERA but the relievers allowed just one run in 9 2/3 innings against the Cardinals.

“We’re starting to feel it a little bit,” Roberts said of the Dodgers building momentum. “I think this series with the bullpen – when you can get a lead and finish a game, that certainly adds to the momentum. I think offensively, getting some guys back on our roster, it just looks better. And guys are starting to get a little bit more comfortable.”

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​ Orange County Register 

Warriors, Steph Curry beat Kings, advance to face Lakers

• May 1, 2023

SACRAMENTO — Stephen Curry, with his clear mouthguard hanging out the corner of his lips, yelled “Light the beam!” after a stoppage of play in the fourth quarter, referring to Sacramento Kings fans’ victory chant.

Two days after the Kings handed it to the Warriors at Chase Center to force a game 7, Curry powered the Warriors to a series-clinching win the Kings’ floor and set an NBA record in the process.

Curry poured in 50 points, the most scored in a game 7 in NBA history, to go with his eight rebounds and six assists as he powered the Warriors to 120-100 victory.

The win set the table for a Western Conference semifinals series against the Lakers starting Tuesday night in San Francisco.

The Kings had outplayed the Warriors for most of the first half, taking a two-point lead into the break, and were looking to win their first playoff series since 2004.

But Curry and the crew had other plans.

The Warriors went on an inspired third-quarter run before sealing the win for good in the fourth.

At one point in the fourth, Curry turned and high-fived Andre Igudoala after he knocked down a shot-clock beating 3 in front of the Warriors’ bench that put his team up 22.

The Warriors seemed to be stuck in cruise control in the first half. Curry carried the team with his 20 points as Jordan Poole and Klay Thompson struggled to get going. But it was clear that he would need help in the final 24 minutes if the Warriors wanted to pull this thing off.

The Warriors went on a tear in the third, with Curry and Kevon Looney playing a big part in that. They outrebounded Sacramento 23-9, including 13-3 on the offensive glass. They took 10 more shots and made three more treys en route to a 34-23 third-quarter surge.

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Looney pulled down seven offensive boards in the third quarter alone and finished the day with 21 total rebounds, including 10 on the offensive glass, becoming just the ninth player in NBA history to grab double-digit offensive rebounds in a Game 7. He also had 11 points, making this his fourth career playoff double-double.

Thompson, unfazed by his bad first half where he went 1-for-10 from the field, celebrated a made 3-pointer at the end of the third by making goggles with his hands as he sat on the floor after getting knocked over by a Kings player. Thompson converted it to a four-point play, making his solo free throw, to give the Warriors a 10-point heading into the fourth quarter.

The cowbells stopped rattling at Sacramento midway through the fourth.

​ Orange County Register 

Hundreds of OC teens participate in Global Youth Service Day

• April 30, 2023

Teens hung out Saturday night talking over a meal.

Actually it was about 300 teens and they were gathered to pack 50,000 meals; doing their part during a Global Youth Service Day organized by JustServe.

Students from two dozen Orange County schools participated, packing meals that will be distributed through local food pantries in partnership with the Family Assistance Ministry.

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​ Orange County Register 

Angels’ José Suarez bounces back with 5 scoreless innings, victory

• April 30, 2023

MILWAUKEE — The Angels gave José Suarez another chance and he rewarded them for their confidence.

The struggling left-hander pitched five scoreless innings in the Angels’ 3-0 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday, a much-needed turnaround after he posted a 10.26 ERA in his first four starts.

“I am very happy because I found myself,” Suarez said through an interpreter. “I feel I’m back. I was working on it and I feel I got it.”

Even though it seemed Suarez’s last outing, when he gave up seven runs, might have been the final straw, manager Phil Nevin instead stuck with the 25-year-old. Nevin said they would evaluate him on a “start to start” basis.

So far, so good.

“Credit to him,” Nevin said. “It’s hard to take your lumps like that for several starts, and I know he hears everything. (Pitching coach Matt Wise) did a heck of a job with him this week. I was down there watching him. He made some adjustments with some things. I’m proud of him. He pitched his butt off today.”

One of the adjustments was with his slider, which he threw harder this time. His slider was effective last year at around 82 mph, but this season he’d been throwing it about 84 mph, and he lost some movement. On Sunday, he was throwing it 87-88 mph, and it worked better.

“I think it’s going to be a key because I executed it,” Suarez said.

Mostly, though, Suarez relied heavily on the changeup that is normally his best offspeed pitch. He induced seven whiffs on 12 swings at his changeup, including one to strike out Blake Perkins, stranding two runners in the second inning.

“I thought his changeup was great,” catcher Matt Thaiss said. “It led to a lot of key outs today. When he has conviction in that pitch along with his fastball he’s one of our best guys. It was great to see.”

In the fourth, Suarez gave up a leadoff double to Brian Anderson but he stranded him. Anderson was at third with one out when Suarez picked up a key strikeout of Luke Voit, who looked at one of his harder sliders.

The Brewers whiffed at 13 of Suarez’s pitches and took another 20 for called strikes. The called strikes and whiffs accounted for 43% of his 77 pitches, which was the highest percentage of his career.

Suarez struck out six, including three in an eye-opening first inning, and he walked three. He allowed multiple baserunners in just one inning.

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Although Suarez retired the final six hitters he faced in the fourth and fifth innings, Nevin was taking no chances. He had right-hander Chris Devenski warming up throughout the fifth, and he brought him in to start the sixth.

Suarez faced just one hitter for a third time.

Nevin had a fresh bullpen, with an off day on Monday, so was quick to yank Suarez after five, and the bullpen got the job done.

Devenski, making his first appearance with the Angels, worked a perfect sixth. Chase Silseth faced the minimum in the seventh. Matt Moore and Carlos Estévez worked the final two innings, with Estévez picking up his sixth save in six tries this season.

The pitching staff didn’t have much room for error because the only runs the Angels managed came on a Jake Lamb homer in the second, a Shohei Ohtani homer in the third and a Luis Rengifo RBI single in the seventh.

Ohtani’s seventh homer of the season was a towering shot that peaked at 162 feet above the field, the highest ball he’s hit this season. It had a hang time of 6.98 seconds, the longest for any Angels homer since at least 2015, when tracking began.

“We haven’t seen many like that,” Nevin said. “It’s special. We see something new with him each day.”

​ Orange County Register