A Texas man was sentenced to 40 years in prison for executing a mechanic over a $500 repair bill before he warned his victim’s family that he would “be out someday.”
Raudel Orozco, 25, unleashed his chilling outburst on Tuesday when he learned his fate in the 2022 killing of Luis Manuel Casillas, a father of two who was shot in the head outside his north Houston auto shop days before Christmas, WFAA reported.
Orozco had pleaded guilty to felony murder while his brother Rolando has also been charged with murder and is scheduled to appear in court May 26 for a pre-trial conference.
Orozco was accused of ambushing and fatally shooting Casillas after an argument over unpaid truck repairs near West Little York Road and the North Freeway on Dec. 23, 2022.
Orozco arrived at the shop with his brother and four other men and refused to pay the roughly $500 repair bill for his truck, according to authorities.
As the confrontation escalated, Casillas allegedly told the group to just take the truck and leave.
Witnesses said Casillas tried to run as the men chased him through nearby businesses before forcing him to his knees and shooting him point-blank.
“My brother started running,” Casillas’ sister Sandy told ABC13 in 2022.
“He ran through all the side businesses he could run through. They did catch up to him, and they shot him in the head. Point blank. They put him on his knees, and they shot him in the head.”
The sister said Casillas begged for his life, telling the men: “I have a family, just take whatever you want.”
“He was a father, a son, a brother, an uncle,” Sandy said. “He didn’t deserve this. He begged them, ‘I have a family, just take whatever you want.’ And they said ‘no.’”
Casillas later died in a hospital. He left behind a wife and two daughters, ages 2 and 3.
Family members said he had planned to use the $500 he was owed to finish buying Christmas gifts for his children.
“Santa was coming with Daddy, but Santa showed up, but Daddy didn’t,” Sandy said after the killing.
The victim’s family gathered at the crime scene on Christmas Day in 2022 and publicly pleaded for justice in the case.
“I’ll be damned if I let this case go cold,” Sandy said at the time. “My brother will get his justice.”
Orozco’s attorney argued he believed his truck had been stolen and claimed the shooting was accidental. The defense also said Orozco was remorseful, according to WFAA.
A third suspect, Jody Duron, had his murder charge dismissed in September 2024 after prosecutors said there was not enough evidence to move forward.
