Danielle Husband
Authorities in north Harris County say a man who shot a deputy late Wednesday was later found dead inside his home, where he had barricaded himself.
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SWAT operators say a robot sent to check on the man, who remained handcuffed from a previous attempt to detain him, found the man’s body at about 12:20 a.m.
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Police initially responded to the home, located in the 2500 block of Kiplands Way in north Harris County, shortly after 9:30 a.m. Authorities attempted to arrest the man on a prior charge of deadly conduct involving a weapon.
Update Harris County Sheriffs Office SWAT operators have found the male suspect deceased in the residence. HCSO Homicide and CSU will take over scene. pic.twitter.com/sKCD8RN4GN
— HCSOTexas (@HCSOTexas) February 1, 2018
Shortly after police placed the man in handcuffs, he pulled a gun from his waistband and fired on deputies, striking one in the arm. That deputy was transported to Memorial Hermann The Woodlands, where he was treated and released.
A second deputy narrowly escaped harm, as a bullet pierced his pant leg.
“The other deputy got very close actually. His pants are ripped from where the bullet went right through his pants. It was a miracle he didn’t get struck as well,” said Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, according to Eyewitness News.
Deputies returned fire as the man continued to shoot.
During the shootout, bullets wounded a second man inside the home, which police say came from the suspect’s gun.
The victim, who was not involved in the crimes, was taken by a LifeFlight helicopter to a nearby hospital in critical condition.
At that point, the suspect barricaded himself inside the home with his wife inside, who hid on a different floor of the home.
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Deputies are unsure if the suspect knew his wife was in the home.
Hostage negotiators arrived on the scene to help the wife escape. They entered the home just after midnight and retrieved her from the downstairs room where she was hiding.
SWAT then sent a robot to search the second floor for the suspect, whom they found deceased.
— HCSOTexas (@HCSOTexas) February 1, 2018
Authorities are unsure if the man died due to suicide or police gunfire.
“We’re just fortunate that the deputy came out okay in this,” said Gonzalez. “These disturbance scenes are very dangerous. Apparently, that’s what erupted. There was a disturbance going on. Apparently there was a couple going through a divorce.”
The incident is currently under investigation.
