After being shot twice while pursuing a Texas carjacking suspect, a female police officer is still in the hospital.
After being assaulted in the face and foot, Missouri City Police Officer Crystal Sepulveda, 29, is shown on video being taken into a Houston hospital early on Saturday morning by her fellow cops.
In Missouri City, which is roughly 20 miles southwest of Houston, an alleged carjacker fired on Sepulveda as she evaded cops, prompting her to be taken to the hospital in the back of a patrol car.
Multiple agencies’ officers encircled the location when they discovered the man hiding in a backyard with automatic guns and long magazines.
He began firing as the cops drew near. The police opened fire in response, hitting the guy many times. He was brought to a local hospital where doctors declared him dead.
According to Sepulveda’s coworkers, she is a “warrior” and is anticipated to “sustain her wounds.”
Following the discovery of a stolen car at a nearby Texaco gas station just before 2.30am on Saturday, Missouri City police began following the culprit.
The suspect failed to stop when officers sought to pull him over after learning that the automobile had allegedly been used in a violent robbery on Friday. Police from Houston were requested as backup.
The driver eventually came to a halt at a house in Houston’s 15500 block of Corsair Road, got out, and began rushing through houses into the backyards.
When cops approached him, he shot two of them, wounded Sepulveda in the process. She was brought to Memorial Hermann Texas Medical Center, where she is now staying with her family and friends.
The culprit was found after cops established a perimeter around the area and discovered that he was “equipped with two automatic weapons with extended magazines,” according to Houston Police Chief Troy Finnier.
The chief said, that’s what they’re up against, and everybody needs to know it.
The culprit recommenced firing, which prompted the police to retaliate. He was brought to Ben Taub Hospital, where his wounds caused him to pass away.
Although his identification is being concealed at the moment, authorities said he is now thought to be between the ages of 25 and 30.
Carolyn Smith is relieved that no stray shots were fired during the gunfight outside her home, where she believes the interaction took place.
She stated that no bullets entered the home. The bullets could have gone into the house. It makes her feel much better to know that God shielded her kid who was here last night knowing that the automobile could have smashed through the glass.
Smith, who had been deeply traumatized by the incident, was also relieved to find that Sepulveda, a Missouri City police officer of three years’ standing, had sustained the assault.
She remarked, before she got home, she believed she was gone. And she guess that really got to her because having family members working at the same place as one does make one feel horrible. However when Smith heard that she was okay, she felt much better.
The incident did not result in any injuries to other police.
Two Houston police officers, a deputy of the Fort Bend County sheriff, and a member of the Texas Department of Public Safety all interacted with the suspect, according to Chief Finner.
The shooting and the part played by their employees in it will be the subject of independent investigations by each of the authorities.
To aid with Sepulveda’s medical costs in the meantime, the Missouri City Police Officers Association – Fraternal Order of Police has organized a fundraiser.
It has raised more money than their target of $15,000 as of Sunday afternoon.
