Man 'Kills Grandparents' Before Shootout With Police: Sheriff

A Texas man allegedly fatally shot his elderly grandparents before he engaged in a rooftop shootout with police, according to a sheriff.

Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said deputies learned two elderly people were possibly shot by a family member at a home in the 12800 block of Foxboro in the Houston area, late on June 15.

Deputies then located a possible suspect on the roof of a home on Cathy Drive, about one mile away from where the elderly victims were killed, and exchanged gunfire.

The suspect was struck and was transported to a nearby hospital where he was treated for his injuries.

Gonzalez described both deputies who responded as "good" and that one sustained minor scrapes to one arm. The officer was taken to hospital as a precaution.

In an update posted to Twitter, Gonzalez said: "Suspect is said to be in a fair condition. The two deceased persons (male 72-year-old and female 70-year-old) at the Foxburo residence, are believed to be the suspect's grandparents."

He added: "It appears that both sustained gunshot wounds. Both locations are in fairly close proximity."

During a media briefing, Gonzalez confirmed an investigation had been launched and that no one else in the area had been harmed.

Gonzalez did not share any further information about the suspect, including his identity, except for describing him as a white male.

He also did not mention whether the suspect had been arrested and what charges the suspect could face.

Newsweek has contacted the Harris County Sheriff's Office for comment via email.

According to the Gun Violence Archive, a database that collects information about shootings from across the country, 16 people have been fatally shot in Houston since June 1.

The same database found that 81 victims have been shot dead in the Texas since June 1 this year.

It also found that there have been 8,454 homicides, murders, and unintentional killings involving a firearm across the U.S. since January 1 this year.

There were 2,391 reported homicides in Texas in 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The CDC added that the homicide death rate in Texas in 2021 was 8.2 per 100,000 people living there.

When counting the total number of homicide deaths, Texas was only behind California that year which recorded 2,495 homicides.

Newsweek has reported on other instances across the U.S. where elderly couples have been shot dead.

Last year, an elderly married couple was shot dead over an alleged homeowners association dispute in Florida.

The Martin County Sheriff's Office said they found Ginger and Henry Wallace shot at the Cedar Pointe Condominium Complex.

Police subsequently apprehended 75-year-old Hugh Hootman on suspicion of the shootings.