HPD: 2 suspects dead in officer-involved gunfight in north Houston

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Police say they were following a group of robbers for an entire day before a deadly shootout.

Two people were killed Thursday night after several officers got into a gunfight with a group of attempted robbers in north Houston, police said. One of the suspects was even wearing an ankle monitor.

The shooting happened at a strip center in the 11300 block of the North Freeway, where police say five suspects were robbing the Affordable Furniture store. When they walked out, five officers were waiting on them. They exchanged fire.

Two of the suspects died at the scene, and a third was taken to a local hospital in an undisclosed condition. No officers were injured, and the remaining two suspects were taken into custody.

Houston Police have released the names of five officers involved in the shooting, and their years on the force. They are:

K. Huey - 20 years

J. Williams - 10 years

B. LeBlanc - 7 years

J. Calhoun - 9 years

R. Caldera - 3 years

Officers say they had been tailing the group of five men, who allegedly had been going business to business. All five men are believed to be part of the Blood gang from the northeast side of Houston. Police also believe the suspects had been involved in several robberies.

Charles White tells Eyewitness News his son was one of the two men killed. He contests his son was not involved in gang activity.

"I know he wasn't in no gang. He might've been doing wrong but he wasn't in no game," White said.

"This is a snapshot of what has happened. We're not going to have all the answers tonight [Thursday] but we'll have some more answers tomorrow possibly once we talk to the suspects, talk to the officers as far as what they were responsible for," said John Cannon, a spokesperson with HPD.

The names of the suspected robbers have not been released.

Velicitas Torres says she was eating at with her family at the nearby Denny's when they heard the gunshots and saw a bullet come through the window. Her son threw her to the floor to protect her from the gunfire.

The door to a nearby Sherwin Williams Paints store also is shot up. People inside the store were visibly shaken.

A crowd gathered soon after the shooting to see what happened. Alisa Conner was one of them.

"It's just sad, scary, and crazy at the same time. They lost their life trying to take from someone else," Conner said.