A Texas man killed five of his neighbours after they asked him to stop firing rounds in his yard because they were trying to sleep.

The shooting in the town of Cleveland, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) north of Houston was reported late on Friday evening.

San Jacinto County Sheriff, Greg Capers, said Saturday that the shooter used an AR-style rifle.

Police were still looking for the 39-year-old suspect.

Confrontation escalated

Neighbours apparently asked the suspect just before midnight to stop firing rounds.

"He had been drinking and he said, 'I'll do what I want to in my front yard,'" Capers said.

The gunmen allegedly then began shooting his neighbours, killing an 8-year-old and four others, inside their house.

Capers said there were 10 people in the house and that no one else was injured.

He said two of the victims were found on top of two surviving children.

"The Honduran ladies that were laying over these children were doing it in such an effort as to protect them," Capers added.

"Everyone that was shot was shot from the neck up, almost execution-style," Capers said.

He said police have previously been to the suspect's home.

"Deputies have come over and spoke with him about him shooting his gun in the yard," Capers said.

The Su Jacinto County Sheriff's Office said in a social media post that the suspect was thought to have left the county. A judge had issued a warrant for the suspect's arrest and assigned a $5 million dollar bond, it said.

Shootings in the US

The US has seen at least 18 mass shootings since January 1. Mass killings in the US are defined as when four or more people are left dead.

Last week, a man in the US state of Missouri was charged with armed criminal action and first-degree assault after he shot a Black teenager who rang his doorbell.