Feb. 15, 2023 Houston police pursued a man with visible guns and drugs in his car for about 20 minutes before the suspect began shooting at officers, who returned fire and fatally shot the man.
By Matt deGrood Source Houston Chronicle Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Houston police officers shot and killed a man early Wednesday after he led them on a 20-minute chase that ended in a shootout with police, Chief Troy Finner said.
Seven Houston police officers were placed on administrative leave after the shooting near the intersection of U.S. 59 and State Highway 90 in Sugar Land, Finner said.
Around 10 p.m. Tuesday, investigators spotted an unoccupied vehicle parked outside a gas station with weapons and drugs in plain sight, Finner said. Police set up surveillance and waited, until around 1:15 a.m., when a man got into the vehicle and drove off.
Police tried to stop the vehicle, but the driver led officers on a chase for about 20 minutes through west Houston, Finner said. At some point during the chase, the man talked with his family, who were on scene by the time the pursuit ended.
The chase ended near the intersection in Houston, where officers fired at the man after he pulled a gun and began shooting at them, Finner said. Seven officers — three from the department’s gang unit, two patrol officers and two from the southwest division — were placed on administrative leave during the investigation, per department policy, Finner said.
Finner did not release the name of the man who was killed.
As of around 6:15 a.m., Finner said investigators would likely have the area closed to traffic for another two or three hours and asked residents to find alternative routes.