Deputy Darren Goforth, 47, was pumping gas about 8:30 p.M. Friday when a man approached him from behind and fired multiple shots. Harris County Sheriff Ron Hickman said that surveillance video shows there were people at the gas station and asked that they reach out with any information that could lead to the man who ambushed Goforth.
Hickman and District Attorney Devon Anderson both said the ambush was unsettling, especially given the recent climate of tension between minorities and law enforcement.
Anderson said that there are bad individuals in every field, but that "there should not be open warfare on law enforcement officers."
Earlier Saturday, Harris County Sheriff's Office spokesman Deputy Thomas Gilliland said officials were questioning a person of interest and had a search warrant for a two-story brick home. Hickman said authorities were looking at a pickup truck at the house, which is about a quarter-mile (400 meters) from the gas station, due to the description of the suspect driving a red or maroon truck with an extended cab.
Goforth, a 10-year veteran of the force, had a wife and two children, Hickman said. As for a motive, Hickman said that until anything is known with "certainty ... It's all speculation.