HOUSTON — A gunman who opened fire at a strip center in the West University area, injuring nine people, has been shot and killed by police, according to CW39 NewsFix.
The Houston Police Department Interim Police Chief Martha Montalvo says the suspect was a lawyer and there were issues concerning his law firm.
The shooting began around 6:29 a.m. Monday on Weslayan near Bissonet. Officers with HPD, Bellaire PD, West University PD and Southside Place PD responded to the scene.
Police located the suspect in the 4400 block of Law Street, and the shooter opened fire on officers. Officers returned fire, killing the suspect.
Witnesses say the shooter appeared to be shooting at “any and everything.” Multiple people were shot before the gunman was taken down.
One man had just dropped his wife off at work when he heard the chaos unfold.
“We went to Randalls to get coffee and we heard a bunch of gunshots going back and forth, really loud shots and we got outside and we heard even more shots. All we know now is there are bombs and everything going on,” Lee Dickerson said.
Skip Cornelius rushed to the scene after learning his son was one of the victims.
“He was shot in the arm, but he’s doing well and I am on my way to the hospital to see him,” Cornelius said. “I haven’t talked to him, my wife talked to him on the phone. He called right after it happened and so we jumped in the car and came.”
Cornelius said he believes his son was sitting inside his car when he was shot.
“The passenger window is shot out and it looks like the bullet is still lodged inside the front driver’s door. I assume he was in the car, but I haven’t talked to him yet,” Cornelius said.
Cornelius described the moment he received the call, and what he learned after arriving to the scene.
“When the phone rings that early in the morning, you don’t really know, but he is OK. He made sure he told his father that he was OK, so I wasn’t terrified. I don’t know anything that exactly happened because I wasn’t here. I’m told that the shooting came from the north and most of the victims were in the other parking lot across the street,” Cornelius said.
Victims were transported to Memorial Hermann Southwest Hospital, Ben Taub Hospital and Memorial Hermann in the Texas Medical Center.
Authorities said three people were treated and released at the scene. One person was listed in critical condition, one was in serious condition, and the other victims were listed in either good or fair condition.
