Southwest
Texas manhunt underway after detective is fatally 'ambushed,' sheriff's office says
A Texas detective was killed Thursday morning after he was ambushed while pursuing an aggravated assault suspect, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office announced. The suspect remains on the run and a manhunt is underway.
The unidentified detective was 28 years old and had been with the sheriff’s office for five years, according to Sheriff Ed Gonzalez on social media.
In a news conference early Thursday morning, HCSO Chief Deputy Mike Lee said the incident began around 10:10 p.m. on Wednesday when a call came in for an aggravated assault at the Little Caesars Pizza on Wallisville Road in northeast Houston.
An employee at the store was reportedly assaulted by a customer who came to the location to pick up a pizza and became upset when his order was wrong. The customer, who has not been identified, allegedly verbally assaulted the employee before pulling out a gun, pistol whipping them and fleeing in a vehicle.
SUSPECT KILLED AFTER STANDOFF FOLLOWING OHIO OFFICER’S DEATH
A 28-year-old detective with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office died early Thursday morning after he was ambushed while pursuing an aggravated assault suspect, according to the agency. (Harris County Sheriff’s Office)
The employee was able to provide police with the car’s make, model and license plate number, Lee said. Detectives and officers on patrol began looking for the vehicle and entered the license plate number into the city’s Flock camera system, where they were able to determine a specific location with a history of hits.
Several detectives went to that area to look for the vehicle, but broke away when they couldn’t find it, Lee said. One detective went back to the area and notified others that he had found the vehicle, but not the suspect, and he was setting up on the car.
Lee said there was some confusion with radio transmissions, but they knew he was having a phone conversation with another detective and, during that conversation, the detective was “apparently ambushed.”
Officers rushed to the location, which Gonzalez said was in the 13200 block of Italian Cypress Trail, and found the detective’s undercover vehicle riddled with bullets. The detective was struck multiple times and was in critical condition.
“Due to the severity of the injuries and the adjacent location of this hospital, they decided it was probably in the best interest not to wait for EMS, and they placed our deputy in one of our patrol vehicles and rushed him here to the emergency room where he succumbed to his gunshot wounds,” Lee said.
Harris County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Mike Lee said the 28-year-old detective was “apparently ambushed” after locating what he believed to be the vehicle belonging to an aggravated assault suspect. (Harris County Sheriff’s Office/Facebook)
The unidentified detective was a member of a “very elite task force,” according to Lee.
“This group, every day, goes out and hunts down child rapists, homicide suspects, some of the most egregious criminals out there and that’s what they do every day for a living,” Lee said. “And he was very good at his job. Very well thought of.”
REMEMBERING POLICE OFFICERS WHO LOST THEIR LIVES ON DUTY LAST YEAR
As of Thursday morning, the suspect remains on the run, but Lee said law enforcement agencies have a “good idea” of who he is and have set up SWAT teams at two locations in efforts to apprehend him.
“I have no doubt between the forces of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office and the Houston Police Department that we will have this suspect in custody in a very timely manner,” Lee said.
While his description is vague, the suspect is a Black male last seen wearing a hat and a black shirt with a jersey with unknown writing on it. His age is unknown.
Gonzalez expressed his “extreme sadness” on social media and said the department “will not rest” until the suspect is behind bars.
“None of us are ever prepared for such an untimely death and our members need your prayers and support. Our thoughts are with his family as they come to terms with this horrible news. An active investigation is underway to identify and apprehend his killer. We will not rest until we do!” he wrote on X.
The last Harris County deputy to be shot and killed was Deputy Sheriff Darren Almendarez on March 31, 2022, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page.
He was off duty when he confronted three people attempting to steal a catalytic converter, resulting in a struggle that ended in gunfire. Two of the suspects were shot, but survived.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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Los Angeles, Ca
LADWP begins long-term repairs after West Hollywood water main rupture
Crews worked overnight on what is expected to be a long-term effort to clean up and repair a broken water main that caused extensive damage in West Hollywood on Thursday.
Yellow tape remained in place Friday morning, blocking streets around Sunset Boulevard and Holloway Drive as crews continued pumping water out of the century-old trunk line.
Asphalt and soil were also being removed so crews could get a better look at the damaged 36-inch trunk line, a major feeder pipe serving the area.
“First and foremost is our crews’ safety,” a Los Angeles Department of Water and Power spokesperson said Thursday. “When we excavate, we are going to have to make sure the area is safe before we send crews in to proceed and start the actual repairs on the pipe.”
The water main ruptured around 3 a.m. Thursday, sending thousands of gallons of water rushing through West Hollywood streets, flooding dozens of garages and pushing parked cars into one another.
A Metro bus yard was also flooded, leaving several buses partially submerged.
The force of the water washed away dirt and gravel supporting the roadway, creating a massive sinkhole on Sunset Boulevard and a smaller one near Palm Avenue, where two people fell in.
“I’m astounded by the massive sinkhole that has just opened up before our eyes,” KTLA’s Annie Rose Ramos reported Thursday from Palm Avenue.
The two men appeared to be uninjured.
As for the larger trunk line that burst beneath Sunset Boulevard, KTLA’s Carlos Herrera reported it was scheduled for replacement in 2031.
LADWP officials now hope to establish a repair timeline after getting a closer look at the damage Friday. For now, the intersection is expected to remain closed for anywhere from several days to several weeks.
The cause of the rupture remains under investigation.
Los Angeles, Ca
Arrest made in deadly shooting at 4th of July gathering in Compton; search for 2nd suspect continues
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna gave an update Thursday on several shootings over the Fourth of July weekend that left three people dead and several others injured.
Police arrested Antoine Jones, a 50-year-old man from the Los Angeles area, who they believe is responsible for the murder of a 19-year-old woman and the attempted murder of two additional surviving female victims who were attending a large community block party in Compton.
On July 4 at approximately 11:40 p.m., deputies from the Compton station responded to an apartment complex on the 700 block of West Laurel Street following reports of multiple people being shot.
Meah Bordenave-Jenkins, a 19-year-old nursing student at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, was killed when gunfire broke out at the party.
Deputies located Bordenave-Jenkins and the two other women suffering from gunshot wounds outside of the apartment complex.
“While today’s announcement represents an important step towards justice for Meah and her family, our work is very far from being over,” said LASD Sheriff Robert Luna.
The LASD is also seeking the public’s help in identifying those responsible for the murder of Eric Washington, 37, a beloved community activist and former government staffer, and the attempted murder of another surviving man injured that same night at the same party.
Washington was reportedly killed while trying to deescalate a conflict at the party, his family said. Deputies found victim Washington suffering from a gunshot wound inside the complex.
Investigators later learned that another man had also been shot at some point during the incident.
Bordenave-Jenkins and Washington both died from their injuries. The remaining victims, two women and a man, sustained non-life-threatening injuries and have been released from the hospital. They have not been identified by police.
Detectives determined the two shootings happened moments apart at the party but appear to be separate and unrelated.
Detectives identified Jones as the suspect responsible for Bordenave-Jenkins’ death and the attempted murder of the two surviving women. Authorities located Jones on July 14 in Los Angeles and took him into custody.
The LASD is still searching for the suspect or suspects responsible for the murder of Washington and the attempted murder of the surviving male victim.
“Although today’s arrest is significant, this investigation remains extremely active,” Luna said.
“There were hundreds of people at this gathering,” Luna said. “Somebody knows, somebody saw or somebody heard what happened.”
The LASD also announced they’re searching for a suspect in a separate shooting at a different Fourth of July gathering that occurred in the early morning of July 5.
At approximately 12:10 a.m., Compton deputies responded to the 2100 block of North Grandee Avenue, where they located a 30-year-old victim, Thaddeus Clark, and a second victim suffering from gunshot wounds at the gathering.
Clark, a father of three, did not survive his injuries, Luna said.
The LASD is urging anyone with information about Clark’s murder and the attempted murder of the surviving victim to contact the LASD Homicide Bureau.
Although these shooting incidents occurred at gatherings less than an hour apart, investigators found no evidence that the two were connected, Luna said.
Luna also announced three suspects have been arrested in connection with a shooting in East L.A. on July 5. It happened as crowds crossed the intersection near Whittier Boulevard and Leonard Avenue during a World Cup match.
Four people were hit by gunfire, including two men, one woman and a boy. None of the injuries were life-threatening.
The sheriff said the alleged shooter, a 15-year-old known gang member, was arrested. Two female suspects, ages 21 and 38, have been arrested in the Lancaster and Palmdale areas for their alleged roles in luring the primary victim to the location and assisting the shooting suspect in evading arrest.
They’re all facing four counts of attempted murder.
Los Angeles, Ca
Water main break floods West Hollywood streets, traps cars
A broken water main sent water gushing from an apartment building and turned nearby streets into rivers in West Hollywood early Thursday morning. The break was reported around 3 a.m. near Holloway Drive and Sunset Boulevard. “It’s a rupture of one of the significant mains that goes through here. West Hollywood, as it turns out, […]
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