Off-duty HPD officer shot at while in pursuit of robbery suspects near Hobby Airport, police say

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Two suspects are in custody Thursday afternoon after police said one shot at an off-duty police officer following a robbery in southeast Houston.

At about 12:50 p.m., an off-duty officer was on his way to work when he witnessed a robbery. HPD said the officer reported seeing a tan vehicle stopped at Dover and Bellfort, with a woman pointing a gun at another woman and taking her purse.

The off-duty officer did not have his radio but quickly dialed 911. Police said the officer, in plain clothes and his personal vehicle, followed the suspect while keeping a safe distance.

Once able to get a hold of his radio, the officer called out on his location for marked units. At some point, as the officer followed the suspect's vehicle, the driver got out, pointed a gun, and fired one time at the officer.

The gunshot did not hit the officer's vehicle, and the suspects fled. The officer kept following them, with marked units staying close by. The pursuit ended at Braniff Street. The suspects in the vehicle, a man and a woman, were arrested and charged with aggravated robbery and aggravated assault.

Police said the male suspect was the driver, and he was the one who fired the shot at the off-duty officer.

Houston police believe more people may have fallen victim to the suspects as other items were found in the vehicle. HPD is asking that anyone who may have been victim of a Hispanic man and woman in their early 20s is urged to call the robbery division.