A manhunt continued on Friday for a suspect who opened fire during rush hour on a Houston freeway, killing two people Thursday evening.
Police initially received a call regarding an accident on Interstate 10 just before 6 p.m. Thursday, but when officers arrived on the scene just minutes later, it had escalated into a shooting.
“There is a high probability the murders are drug related,” Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo tweeted Friday afternoon.
The @houstonpolice investigation continues. There is a high probability the murders are drug related. Anyone with information is asked to call HPD Homicide at 713-308-3600 or @CrimeStopHOU at 713-222-8477 (TIPS) leading to an arrest(s) & charges for reward up to 5K. https://t.co/OPU68DnajD
— Chief Art Acevedo (@ArtAcevedo) August 9, 2019
There is a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.
“The shooter is described only as a Hispanic male in his 20s, about 5’7,” Acevedo tweeted. “He was wearing a red shirt and fled the scene in a newer model, dark colored 4-door sedan.
Police have not released the name of the dead men, who they say are 25 and 33 years old.
Investigators said the suspect’s vehicle struck a sedan in the eastbound lane of the Houston highway right in the middle of rush hour, causing it to spin out and into traffic.
The suspect, armed with what witnesses described to a be a shotgun, got out of his car and unleashed a barrage of gunfire on the silver sedan.
He continued to pepper the vehicle with bullets and followed it on foot while it rolled down a hill, according to authorities.
Witnesses on the scene tried to provide first aid to a pair of men who were shot, but the two men were pronounced dead on the scene.
A witness on the scene, who was also armed, said he took several shots at the suspect, though it’s unclear if he was injured.
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