NOT JUST ANOTHER DAY ON A HOUSTON FREEWAY

Man armed with AR-15 kills 2 on I-10 in rush hour traffic

By Jessica Willey

KTRK
August 8, 2019

HOUSTON, Texas -- A gunman is on the run after Houston police say he shot and killed two people with an AR-15 in the middle of rush hour on I-10 near John Ralston.

Just before 6 p.m. Thursday, investigators said the shooter and another person inside his sedan struck another vehicle, causing it to spin out. Both suspects got out. One of them got people's attention.

"A Hispanic male, tan shirt, holding a really big gun, shooting at another car," reported a police dispatcher.

"One of the witnesses saw the weapon," HPD Assistant Chief Bobby Dobbins said. "He's familiar with guns and he believes it was an AR-15."

Police say as the victims' car rolled towards the gunman, he fired multiple rounds. Both men inside were killed.

According to police sources, a large trash bag with marijuana was in their car. Investigators are looking at all possible motives.

"Road rage? An accident? Narcotics? We don't know yet," Dobbins told reporters.

The suspects took off, leaving behind a crime scene on the freeway. Police do not have a good description of the suspects or their vehicle.

Several witnesses are being questioned. Investigators are urging anyone who may have seen or heard anything to call HPD.

"This is a scary event to happen at 6 o'clock at night on a busy freeway," Dobbins said.

Another driver, who carries a pistol in his vehicle for personal protection, feared for his life, police say, and fired at the shooter. They do not know if he was hit.

The victims have not been identified.

EDITOR’S NOTE: KHOU reported that despite the hundreds of drivers around the scene of the shooting, police said no one has been able to confirm the make and model of the suspect's car.

“I think what happened, and I'm just speculating, is that a lot of people thought this was just a [car] accident on the freeway,” HPD Assistant Chief Dobbins said Wednesday. “They just drove by it and went home and didn't realize a shooting was happening until after the person got out of the car, and that happened so fast that those driving by never even saw it.”