City announces $10K reward after father shot, killed while driving with his kids on East Freeway

HOUSTON – A 29-year-old man was fatally shot late Friday while driving along the East Freeway. His two sons were in the car when the shooting occurred, police said.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner announced Sunday a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest of those involved in the deadly shooting of Tyler Young.

Police said at approximately 10:40 p.m., a Jacinto City police officer was flagged down in a business parking lot in the 11800 block of the East Freeway service road and was told the victim was shot while he was driving eastbound on the freeway in the city limits of Houston.

Officers said when they arrived, they located Young dead inside his vehicle.

Witnesses told investigators a white passenger car pulled alongside the victim’s vehicle in the 11400 block of the East Freeway main lanes and someone inside the white car began shooting into the victim’s SUV. The victim was struck at least one time, police said.

The boys, aged 6 and 8, told officers they heard some sort of pop and initially thought someone had thrown a rock at the car. When they saw their father slump over in his seat, they took control of the vehicle, using the steering wheel to guide it off the freeway and down the service road near Holland Avenue. Once the vehicle came to a rest, they immediately got out of the car and sought the help of a woman exiting a Chili’s restaurant nearby, police said.

Neither of the boys sustained any injuries, police said.

The fatal shooting remains under investigation by the Houston Police Department Homicide Division.

Young’s family has created a GoFundMe account to help cover funeral expenses.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS (8477) or the Houston Police Department’s Homicide Division at 713-308-3600.