One man is dead and another is on the run after neighbors confronted two suspected burglars in west Houston, according to police. What began as a reported break-in ended in a deadly confrontation in the middle of the afternoon, leaving investigators piecing together exactly how the violence unfolded.
Officers were dispatched at around 1 o'clock in the afternoon, initially to the 4300 block of Cinnabar, with the scene centered on the nearby 1800 block of High Star. Police said the two areas are very close together, and that is where the encounter that left one man dead took place.
According to investigators, the two individuals were believed to have tried to break into a home earlier in the morning. They then returned at around 1 o'clock in the afternoon, when it appeared that they were attempting to break into the same residence again, drawing the attention of people living nearby.
Area residents and neighbors saw what was happening and went out because of the criminal activity they were witnessing, police said. A confrontation then ensued between the neighbors and the suspected burglars, and at some point during that clash one of the men was shot several times.
When officers arrived, they tried to render aid to the wounded man, but he succumbed to his injuries at the scene. Police said they believe he was one of the two potential burglary suspects. The second man fled and had not been located, while the people who had been involved in the confrontation stayed at the scene.
Houston Police Department homicide detectives responded and began interviewing everyone who remained, collecting evidence and processing the scene. Officials stressed that the investigation was still in its preliminary stages, with key questions, including exactly who fired the shots, still unanswered.
Investigators said the suspects were accused of trying to break into a single home, and that two people were believed to have been involved in the confrontation. As for whether anyone would face charges, police said it was too early to say, and that any decision would depend on the evidence, surveillance video and witness statements gathered as the case proceeds.