HOUSTON – The mother of a Houston Police Department Sergeant has been identified as the innocent bystander who was killed when two carjackers crashed into two vehicles stopped at a red light in southeast Houston.
Statement from Police Chief @TroyFinner: https://t.co/D9shfp2rLR pic.twitter.com/RSZOp4sZzj
— Houston Police (@houstonpolice) September 7, 2023
The crash took place around 10:20 a.m. on Van Fleet at Martin Luther King Boulevard.
WHAT HAPPENED
On Wednesday, around 8 p.m., Houston police responded to reports of a car robbery in the 8400 block of Monroe. They said a woman had been robbed by two suspects.
The next day, the woman contacted her car dealership, requesting them to track her missing vehicle.
When she got the location, the woman called the police again, telling them that she had tracked her vehicle, and it was located in the 7800 block of Jutland.
A little after 10 a.m., officers responded to the area and spotted the vehicle at Jutland and Bellfort. A pursuit was initiated.
Officers said they quickly lost sight of the vehicle due to the suspects’ high rate of speed.
The suspects continued, eventually crashing into two vehicles that were stopped at a red light and hitting an innocent bystander on MLK.
The innocent bystander, who was later identified as an HPD Sgt’s mom, was pronounced dead at the scene The drivers of the two vehicles were transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The two suspects, who were in their 20s, were also transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening.
HPD said they retrieved a firearm from the suspects’ vehicle.
Finner said he is asking the District Attorney’s Office to accept murder charges in this incident.
“I’m calling out for lawmakers around the nation, let’s increase that penalty for individuals that are fleeing in vehicles. It’s dangerous,” Finner stated.
He added that sometime next week, he will be discussing a policy with lawmakers on the way officers handle situations like this.