HOUSTON – An investigation is underway after two men were killed and another was injured during an “ambush-type attack” at a gas station in north Harris County on Monday afternoon, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said.
Deputies got the call to the business, a Sunoco gas station, located in the 15300 block of Ella Boulevard, just before 3 p.m.
Sheriff Gonzalez said three men were parked at a gas pump when three masked gunmen walked up to the vehicle with AR-15-style rifles and opened fire, killing two of the men and injuring the third man in the ambush-style attack. The suspects fled the scene in a white sedan.
“It pretty much looked like it was an ambush-style attack from the get-go,” Gonzalez said. “They exited with some very serious firepower and just opened fire on the vehicle.”
He said it happened quickly and appeared to be pre-meditated.
The victims’ identities have not been released. The motive for the shooting is unknown.
Sheriff Gonzalez described it as a busy, high-crime area for the department.
“It’s almost like the normal. Every other day, every week, every night,” a neighbor who lives across the street from the gas station told KPRC 2.
They said the regular gunfire makes it difficult for some to raise a family in the area and Monday’s deadly shooting was another reminder.
“I thought it was inside of my apartments because it sounded so loudly,” another neighbor told KPRC 2. “This one was way more intense and way louder.”
The sheriff’s office is asking the public for any tips as they continue looking for the suspects who fled in the white sedan. Call HCSO at 713-274-9100 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.
@HCSOTexas units responded to a shooting at a gas station at the 15300 blk of Ella Blvd. Males were parked at a gas pump when unknown suspect(s) opened fire. Two males are deceased at the scene. Suspect(s) fled in a white sedan. Investigators are enroute. I’m enroute also. pic.twitter.com/nS2bnyrr2C
— Ed Gonzalez (@SheriffEd_HCSO) January 23, 2023