Man annoyed by IHOP customer before allegedly shooting him in head

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Thursday, March 1, 2018
Suspect in custody after violent IHOP shooting
Suspect in custody after violent IHOP shooting

CLEAR LAKE SHORES, Texas (KTRK) -- A man suspected of shooting a customer in the head at an IHOP told investigators he was annoyed by the noise the victim and others were making just a table away, according to documents.

Jesse Paul Schonier, 40, was arrested on Feb. 18 after an alleged altercation that led to the shooting at the restaurant located along FM-2094 in Clear Lake Shores.

RELATED: IHOP customer shot in the head while paying his bill in Clear Lake Shores

According to a probable cause document, witnesses who were with the victim said Schonier gave them the middle finger and told them to be quiet. A waitress told Schonier and his wife to pay their bill and leave.

In the document, Schonier allegedly told his wife to wait at the front entrance as he went out to his vehicle to grab his handgun. The suspect then allegedly returned, got into it again with the victim - who was paying his bill, and then opened fire through the glass door.

The victim, who was identified as 26-year-old Nickolis Peoples, was hit in the head.

In the document, officers who were called to the scene found Schonier waiting next to his vehicle, as well as a handgun about 50 yards away from where the shooting took place.

Peoples was taken to Clear Lake Regional Hospital with critical injuries.

Schonier was arrested after witnesses identified him as the gunman. Documents state Schonier told an officer at Galveston County Jail that he recalls an altercation with the victim and claims the victim threatened him. That was when he said he went out to get his gun.

Schonier was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and set bond at $50,000.