A suspect is in custody following a manhunt after a Texas deputy constable was shot and killed on his way to work, police said.
On Tuesday afternoon, the Harris County Constable Precinct 4 identified Deputy Maher Husseini as the officer who was killed. Police said that the suspect was in custody following a short manhunt. The Galveston County Sheriff's Office spotted the suspect's vehicle and gave chase before it crashed into the water by Old Causeway in Galveston, FOX 26 Houston reported.
Calling the suspect an "assailant," Houston Police Department Chief Noe Diaz said that Husseini was on his way to work in his personal car and had stopped at a red light when a man exited a vehicle, walked up and shot the deputy.
"We are working on an unfortunate, a tragic incident, where a local constable was shot by an assailant who we have yet to identify," Diaz said, noting that Husseini was shot multiple times.
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Authorities have not provided a name of the suspect, but said that he was a Middle Eastern male, 35 to 40 years old, 5-foot-9, 200 pounds, who was last seen wearing a dark shirt, dark pants, with dark thinning hair.
The suspect's vehicle was described as a charcoal-gray Chevy Impala with a "very unique bumper disfigurement underneath," Diaz said.
Authorities said Husseini had been with Constable Mark Herman’s Office since 2021, and patrolled the South-Central District.
"Please keep Deputy Constable Husseini in your prayers," the Harris County Constable Precinct 4 posted on X.
Diaz previously shared how the loss of life impacted the local community, saying that it was "terrible" and "shouldn't happen."
"Any loss of life is trauma. Any death is terrible in this community," he said. "Being a deputy, it just brings us closer as police officers who are here to serve the community. It shouldn't happen."
Anyone with information on the incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-8477 or HPD's Homicide Division at 713-308-3600.
