Texas mass shooting leaves 5 dead, including 8-year-old; manhunt underway

San Jacinto County, Texas sheriff says 5 shooting victims were from Honduras, suspect is a Mexican male

By Edward Era Barbacena 

Five people were shot to death early Saturday morning in southern San Jacinto County, Texas, police said.

The San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call for "harassment" around midnight and discovered five people had been shot at a property in the Trail End Subdivision west of Cleveland. Four people were pronounced dead at the scene and one victim died at a local hospital.

Three other victims were taken to the hospital "covered in blood," according to the sheriff's office. It was not clear if they were injured or if the blood belonged to the other victims. 

Sheriff Greg Capers told Bluebonnet News that the victims were from Honduras. He said a total of 10 people were living in the house. Of those killed, four were adults, one male and three females, while the youngest was just eight years old. The three other victims who were taken to the hospital were children. 

"When we got here, the two females in the bedroom were actually laying over the top of the younger children, two of the three younger children" that survived, Capers said. 

Police have identified a suspect in the shooting and are actively looking for him. 

The suspected shooter is a "Mexican male from Mexico." The sheriff's office has a copy of his consular identification card. 

Capers said the suspect has been known to shoot a firearm in the front yard of the residence. Police found shell casings there. 

The suspect is not believed to be in the area. 

An investigation into the shooting is ongoing.