Officer-Involved Shooting – 1307 W. Wheeler

INFORMATION RELEASE (1)
TUESDAY, APRIL 20, 2021
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
EVENT #21-7792, OFFICER-INVOLVED SHOOTING (OIS)

This past evening, Monday 04/19/2021, at approximately 9:38 p.m., APPD officers were sent to W. Matlock and 13th Street and then to the 1300 Blk. of W. Wheeler Avenue for a male subject knocking on car doors and acting suspiciously. One caller reported the male seemed to be on narcotics. Responding officers contacted the male at the Valero located at 1307 W. Wheeler Avenue.

The first officer on location contacted the 52 YOA Hispanic male inside the convenience store. The subject was excited and spoke primarily in Spanish. He accompanied the officer outside the store and to the police officer’s patrol truck. He immediately got inside the police officer’s patrol truck and demanded the doors remain shut.

Not knowing what they were dealing with, the officer and his arriving supervisor requested EMS while trying to calm the male and speak to him. Officers also requested a Spanish-speaking deputy from San Patricio County Sheriff’s Office.

It was unclear to officers if they were dealing with a drug-induced excited delirium situation or a person experiencing a mental health crisis.

While awaiting EMS, the male produced a semi-automatic firearm and started shooting indiscriminately from within the patrol truck. Officers tried to reason with the male to put the gun down and speak to them, but he remained defiant. The male then shot back towards the officers who in turn returned fire back, striking and mortally wounding the male.

Once the scene was made safe, the officers extracted the male from the patrol truck and began lifesaving measures via CPR and the application of the AED. The male died as a result of his injuries.

Investigations

At this time there are two investigations underway:

1. The Texas Rangers have assumed the criminal investigation into this event. The APPD staff will cooperate with their investigation which is standard protocol and policy of the APPD. The Texas Rangers will release their findings to the San Patricio County District Attorney’s office for review.
2. An internal investigation into the officers’ use of force and policy compliance is simultaneously underway. This investigation is led by the APPD’s Criminal Investigations Division. Their findings will be forwarded to the Chief of Police.

Officer Tenure

The first officer involved in this event has been with the department for just under 2 years. This officer has a total of just under 2 years of policing service. The supervisor has been with the department for just over 3 years with approximately 20 years of total policing service. The third officer has been with the department for approximately 9 months with 9 months of total policing service. We are not releasing the officers’ identities at this time.

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As with all rapidly evolving events, the information shared is subject to change or correction. When new information becomes available or a correction/update is needed, those updates will append to this original release.