HOUSTON – A DPS trooper reportedly opened fire and shot a man who he believed was breaking into his apartment complex in downtown Houston overnight.
According to the Houston Police Department, the shooting took place in the 500 block of Crawford near Minute Maid Park just before midnight on Sunday.
HPD commanders and PIO are en route to an outside agency officer involved shooting in the 500 block of Crawford St.
— Houston Police (@houstonpolice) September 25, 2023
Preliminary information is a suspect was shot and taken to a hospital. The law enforcement officer was not injured.#hounews pic.twitter.com/brHvHQlqWu
Investigators said the trooper lived on the fifth floor of the building, and at some point during the night, he thought someone was attempting to break into his apartment.
The trooper allegedly shouted at the person before shooting through the door, hitting the man in the shoulder.
“The suspect does live in the same building, the same building as the trooper. We don’t know why he went to the apartment, but the initial assessment showed that the trooper believed that he was trying to break in,” said HPD Assistant Chief Yasar Bashir.
Officers said the man ran down the hallway and was later found on another floor, bleeding. He was detained and then transported to the hospital in stable condition.
The DPS trooper was not injured.
Investigators are working to determine if the man was impaired in any way and mistook the trooper’s apartment for his apartment. It’s not clear if the trooper knew the man or how close they lived to one another.
The 35-year-old man who was shot has not been charged.
HPD’s Special Investigations Unit and the Texas Rangers are investigating.