29 Oct Edinburg police officer hospitalized after being shot multiple times; 21-year-old suspect found dead

An officer with the Edinburg Police Department was hospitalized Thursday morning after being shot several times while answering a domestic disturbance call at an apartment complex, and the 21-year-old man who opened fire was later found dead inside the unit, Police Chief Jaime Ayala said at a press conference.

Ayala told reporters outside the West Oak Apartments, on the 200 block of Fig Drive, that police were called at about 9:10 a.m. Two women who share the apartment with their brother said he was behaving erratically. The responding officer, who has four years with the department and whose name has not been released, was the first to arrive. Ayala said the man was armed with an assault rifle and a pistol and fired on him.

Other officers who reached the scene also came under fire, Ayala said, but got to the wounded officer, pulled him behind cover and began giving him medical care. He was taken to DHR Health, where he remains hospitalized, and his condition has not been disclosed. Ayala asked the public to keep the officer in their prayers. Hidalgo County Sheriff J.E. “Eddie” Guerra, whose deputies assisted at the scene, also asked for prayers for the officer.

Officers established a perimeter but continued to take gunfire until they could enter the apartment, Ayala said. They found the man dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. He has not been publicly identified.

Ayala said the man shared the unit with his two sisters and was the subject of a warrant for violating probation, issued in an area north of San Antonio. Investigators are questioning the women and other witnesses to learn what led to the call and the shooting.

Ayala said the public is not in danger, though he described the situation as fluid and ongoing. The Texas Rangers have taken up the investigation of the shooting, and the Edinburg police Internal Affairs Division is running a separate review. Ayala credited the sheriff’s office and the Texas Department of Public Safety with assisting and said further details will follow as the investigation progresses. No questions were taken at the press conference.