Crime in Houston, Texas: Suspect wanted in fatal shooting

HOUSTON — Houston police are searching for a suspect who was caught on surveillance video fatally shooting another man in the Gulfgate area last week.

It happened Friday, June 7, at a gas station on the Gulf Freeway near Griggs Road. The victim was identified by police and his family as 41-year-old Fernando Villareal.

According to HPD, Villareal was shot outside the gas station around 12:40 p.m. Police only described the suspect as a man wearing a dark hoodie and shorts.

In surveillance video obtained by KHOU 11 News, the suspect can be seen with a gun in his hand during an apparent argument with Villareal.

After the suspect fired his gun, he fled to an unknown location while Villareal was lying on the ground. Another man approaches Villareal with a phone in his hand and later lifts Villareal’s shirt to examine his wound.

The Harris County medical examiner’s website lists Villareal’s cause of death as a “gunshot wound to the chest.”

From a preliminary investigation, HPD determined that Villareal and the suspect knew each other and had spent more than three hours together at the gas station before the shooting.

However, it is unclear how long the two men had known each other.

In surveillance video, the two men can be seen inside the gas station playing electronic slot machines and talking quietly to each other minutes before the shooting.

After leaving the machines, the two men approach the front counter and then exit together. The suspect appears to check his wallet before the two men turn the corner and begin arguing. That’s when shots are fired.

At this time, no known motive has been given for the shooting. Police believe the suspect lives near the scene of the shooting, around Telephone Road and Gulf Freeway.

Police released four additional surveillance photos of the suspect on Wednesday.

Anyone with information on the identity of the suspect is asked to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or speak anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

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