HOUSTON – Houston police on Wednesday released video footage related to the death of a quadruple murder suspect who died by apparent suicide as officers were attempting to arrest him.
The man, William Escaño Yah, was being sought in connection with the Sept. 5 shooting deaths of his relatives at their home on Imogene Street in southwest Houston.
Recommended Videos
In a video presentation narrated by Belinda Null, assistant chief of the Houston Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Command, Null states that when officers attempted to apprehend Yah he lifted a gun to his head and shot himself.
At approximately 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 9, police located Yah, in the 6300 block of Alder Drive. Yah was sleeping inside a white Nissan Titan that was reported missing from the initial crime scene.
RELATED: Murder suspect in fiery quadruple homicide in southwest Houston shoots himself, HPD says
Officers commanded Yah to lift up his hands and are heard on video saying “Manos arriba, manos arriba.”
Yah then lifted a gun to his head and shot himself, Null said.
An officer is then heard saying “He shot himself, he shot himself.”
The Houston Fire Department transported Yah to an area hospital where he was later pronounced deceased, Null said.
Officers recovered the gun from the floorboard of the vehicle.
Following Yah’s death, his relatives told KPRC 2 he suffered from depression.
Police have not yet released a possible motive for the deaths of 37-year-old Jairo Escaño, 46-year-old Elvira Escaño, 13-year-old Isabelle Escaño and 10-year-old Jairo Escaño Jr, whose bodies were found at approximately 8:10 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 5 after HFD fire crews had extinguished a house fire there and found all four individuals dead inside the residence. All of the victims appeared to have been fatally shot, investigators said.
HOW TO GET HELP: Here are a few resources for addressing family violence in the Houston area.
The YouTube videos posted by HPD show police show footage related to the apparent suicide of a suspect police officers were attempting to arrest. Viewer discretion is strongly advised.
HPD released four videos related to the incident. View them all here.