Eliseo Hernandez Moreno

Eliseo Hernandez Moreno was born on September 27, 1959, in the United States. Public records and court documents provide limited information about his early childhood, education, or employment history. By his early twenties, Moreno was married and living in Texas, though the relationship would later become strained. At the time of the killings, he was estranged from his wife, Blanca Moreno.

On October 11, 1983, Eliseo Hernandez Moreno embarked on a violent killing spree across several communities in the Houston region of Texas. Armed with a Smith & Wesson .357 Magnum revolver, Moreno was searching for his estranged wife when he first targeted members of her family.

His spree began in College Station, Texas, where Moreno fatally shot his brother‑in‑law, Juan Garza, and Garza’s wife, Esther Garza. After killing the couple, Moreno fled the scene and continued traveling through southeast Texas.

Later that same day, north of Hempstead, Moreno encountered Texas Highway Patrol Trooper Russell Lynn Boyd. Moreno shot and killed Boyd, stealing the trooper’s service weapons, which included a blue‑steel Smith & Wesson .357 Magnum revolver and a Remington 870 12‑gauge pump‑action shotgun. The murder of a law enforcement officer elevated the manhunt and prompted a large‑scale response from multiple agencies.

Moreno then entered the town of Hempstead, where he murdered three elderly civilians: James Bennatte, Allie Wilkins, and Ann Bennatte. During this phase of the spree, Moreno also took members of a family hostage, forcing them to drive him toward Pasadena, Texas. He later seized another hostage as he attempted to flee toward the Rio Grande Valley.

Law enforcement officers established roadblocks across the region. Moreno was ultimately arrested at a Wharton County roadblock on October 11, 1983, while driving with a hostage in his vehicle. The hostage was rescued unharmed, and Moreno was taken into custody without further loss of life.

Moreno pleaded guilty to all six murders and refused to pursue appeals. In 1984, he was sentenced to death for the capital murder of Trooper Boyd. In October 1985, Moreno received additional sentences of 45 years in prison for the murders of Juan and Esther Garza, and 35 years in prison for the murders of James Bennatte, Allie Wilkins, and Ann Bennatte. These sentences were to be served consecutively, though they were ultimately rendered moot by the death sentence.

After spending just over three years on death row, Eliseo Hernandez Moreno was executed by lethal injection at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice on March 4, 1987. He was 27 years old at the time of his execution.