(This story has been updated to add new information.)
A Texas Department of Public Safety trooper and a Nueces County Precinct 5 deputy constable shot a man who fled a traffic stop Wednesday morning in Nueces County, according to the Precinct 5 constable.
The shooting happened in the Sandy Hollow neighborhood off Easley Lane, where the northwest corner of Nueces County borders Jim Wells County.
Troopers and deputy constables from the Nueces County Precinct 5 Constable’s Office responded to a call at about 8:40 a.m. for a request to assist with a vehicle whose driver fled a traffic stop, according to a news release from the DPS.
Corpus Christi Police Department officers had been pursuing the man within city limits for reckless driving on Northwest Boulevard, according to a Facebook post by the constable’s office.
The man, who was later identified as 27-year-old Rob Thomas Garza, according to the Facebook post, was headed to his residence in a white Nissan, said Nueces County Precinct 5 Constable Oscar Mendoza.
Corpus Christi police followed Garza and attempted to stop him, according to the Facebook post. When he fled, police terminated the pursuit.
Garza continued speeding west on Northwest Boulevard toward Bluntzer Street, the Facebook post said.
DPS troopers and Precinct 5 deputies were in the area and picked up the pursuit as Garza continued driving west. They temporarily lost the vehicle around Easley Lane but found it with the assistance of Corpus Christi Police Department drone units, according to the Facebook post.
They continued pursuing him as he drove north on Farm to Market Road 666, taking a left on Farm to Market Road 3088 and north on County Road 99 in Sandia, Mendoza said.
Garza eventually drove into a private property in the 6400 block of Easley Lane, where state troopers and Precinct 5 deputies followed and attempted to block in the vehicle, the Facebook post said. Garza fired a handgun at the state troopers’ units, according to the post, in addition to shooting at deputies minutes before they blocked him in.
Garza tried to leave the scene, ramming his car into one of the state trooper’s cars, Mendoza said.
A trooper and a Precinct 5 deputy returned fire, striking Garza and his vehicle, Mendoza said.
A spokesperson with the DPS Texas Highway Patrol Corpus Christi district initially said that two troopers had shot Garza.
The officers secured Garza’s weapon, pulled him from his vehicle and began giving first aid, Mendoza said.
No troopers or deputy constables were injured.
Garza was transported to Christus Spohn Shoreline in Corpus Christi, the release said.
Mendoza said Wednesday afternoon that the last he heard, Garza was on life support.
The Texas Rangers are now leading the investigation into the shooting, according to the DPS news release.
More: Woman killed Friday night in hit-and-run crash in Jim Wells County
More: Two dead after being hit by vehicle on state Highway 359 near Skidmore
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Law enforcement officers shot man who fled from police in Nueces County, constable says
Reporting by Katie Nickas, Corpus Christi Caller Times / Corpus Christi Caller Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
