Murder suspect accused of firing at HPD in custody

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Authorities say a 43-year-old man is now in custody after firing at officers. He also led them on a chase that began at a home where a body was found.

Yesterday morning, a police officer responded to an assault call near south Houston when he was immediately fired upon entering the neighborhood.

The shooter got into a vehicle and tried to flee the scene. Police chased the suspect until he attempted to break into a nearby home.

Police say the body of a women was found on the porch who neighbors identified as the shooters ex-girlfriend. Charges have not yet been filed against the shooter.

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Suspected illegal immigrants in custody following chase

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A chase in Fort Bend County has landed almost a dozen suspected illegal immigrants in custody.

Deputies have taken 11 suspected illegal immigrants into custody after a chase that ended near Stafford at about 10:30am. We're told deputies were acting on a tip by a driver who said he saw people stacked in the bed of a pickup truck.

After getting the truck to stop, five or six of the people reported escaped on foot. Immigration officials are now taking over the investigation.

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Convicted Cleveland rapist Eric McGowen back in custody

Eric McGowen, 20, last month was found guilty of aggravated sexual assault of a child.

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A man convicted for his part in the alleged gang rape of a young Liberty County girl is back in police custody.

The Gulf Coast Task Force Tuesday arrested Eric McGowen at an apartment in the Greenspoint area. He has been turned over to the Texas Rangers and is being returned to Liberty County.

Law enforcement officials say they had information that McGowen may be staying with family and pulled over a family member during a traffic stop, at which point that person confessed that McGowen had been staying with them.

Investigators say they went to the apartment and surprised McGowen while he was sitting on the toilet in the bathroom. He was then taken into custody.

Liberty Co. officials will decide whether any of the family members in Greenspoint will face charges of harboring a fugitive.

McGowen was convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child and sentenced to 99 years in prison back on August 30. However, he was already free on bail and was not in court when the verdict was read after skipping out during a break in the proceedings. A warrant for his arrest was then issued.

In all, 20 males -- 14 adults and six juveniles -- have been charged in the case. Prosecutors say the 11-year-old girl was sexually assaulted on at least five occasions from mid-September through early December of 2010. Police began investigating after one of the girl's classmates told a teacher he saw video of her being sexually assaulted in an abandoned trailer.

Testifying using a pseudonym, the victim last month told jurors about an encounter in October 2010 and one the following month in which she said McGowen and several other men and boys took turns sexually assaulting her while recording the encounters on video.

The girl briefly broke down in tears as jurors were shown a few minutes of video of the alleged sexual assault in October 2010.

She described another encounter that November that started in a different Cleveland home and continued at a nearby abandoned trailer. She told jurors that McGowen assaulted her with a beer bottle during that incident.

McGowen, 20, was the only one to go to trial so far. Twelve other defendants -- all six juveniles and six of the adults -- have accepted guilty pleas.

The case sparked outrage in Cleveland, and early on, some residents suggested the girl was partly responsible because they say she wore makeup, looked older than her age and wasn't properly supervised by her parents, drawing widespread condemnation.

The case also has been complicated by a belief among many in the predominantly black neighborhood where several of the suspects live that the arrests were racially motivated. All of the suspects are black, while the girl is Hispanic.

Stay with Eyewitness News and abc13.com for the latest details.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

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Suspect in custody for baseball field fire

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The baseball season may be delayed for the youngsters in the Cy-Fair Sports Association. Someone set fire to their equipment garage at the Queenston baseball complex and destroyed thousands of dollars worth of equipment.

For the youth players and team volunteers, this fire is devastating. One player was able to salvage only a glove. Now, with a suspect in custody, and the league out thousands of dollars, the young players are wondering, what happens next.

"I woke up my son this morning. I said, 'Carson, I've got to go. The building burned down.' He was in tears," recalled Curtis Cooper with the Cy-Fair Sports Association.

After school, the fourth grader saw the damage for himself.

"I've been playing out here ever since I first started," said baseball player Carson Cooper. "It's kind of devastating."

The Cy-Fair Sports Association youth baseball league storage garage was gutted by a fire. The blaze broke out just before 5pm Friday. A cell phone photo captured the flames.

Carson said, "After I saw a picture of it still flaming, I don't know why anyone would even do this."

Doug Becker with the Cy-Fair Sports Association said, "We probably had about $20,000 worth of baseball equipment. It's gone."

The charred equipment inside was once used to help maintain nine baseball fields used by more than 2,500 kids.

Curtis said, "We keep our extra bases, our striping material, we also keep our pallets of field materials which go on our field."

"I'm thinking, who would do something like this and why," Carson wondered.

The fire marshal has determined that the fire was not an accident and is investigating further. The Harris County Sheriff's Office confirms it has a suspect, Jalen Mays, 19, in custody. Investigators say Mays, who was intoxicated, was seen walking away from the building at the time of the fire.

"This person has taken away kids' ability to come out and play baseball," Curtis said.

With their equipment in ashes and their store garage destroyed, the Cy-Fair Sports Association is forced to temporarily turn kids away from their baseball field.

"I knew that I had baseball practice tonight and now it's closed, so I'm really sad," Carson said.

No word yet on charges the suspect may face.

The non-profit baseball league's first practice of the season has been canceled.

Officials with the sports league say there was no insurance on the building. CFSA is soliciting donations of money, time or resources to help remove the damaged building, rebuild it, and replace the lost equipment for the complex.

The Cy-Fair Sports Association is a 100 percent volunteer driven, non-profit association that promotes youth athletics in northwest Houston. Donations can be accepted at 281-970-8080 or sent care of CFSA Baseball to: PO Box 841751 Houston, Texas, 77284-1751. For further information, please email baseball@cy-fairsports.org.

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Mother's boyfriend in custody for her death

Police arrested this man Saturday in connection with his girlfriend's death. Charges are pending. His name has not been released.

  KINGWOOD, TX (KTRK) -- A Kingwood mother was dead Saturday and her boyfriend was in custody, police said.

Around 10am, police got a call about a disturbance at an apartment in the 2100 block of Lake Hills Drive.

According to officials, the suspect called his parents and told them something had happened and he was feeling suicidal. They asked police to check on their son.

When they arrived, investigators found the victim's body and took the suspect into custody.

Police said the victim's eight-year-old son was home at the time but didn't see anything. He was released to his biological father.

Investigators believe the victim may have been strangled, but an autopsy will be performed to confirm her cause of death.

No names have been released.

Please stay with Eyewitness News and abc13.com for updates as new information becomes available.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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HPD: Missing boy found safe; suspect in custody

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A scare is over and Amber Alert canceled after a missing 4-year-old was found safe, but several questions remain about his disappearance.

Police issued the Amber Alert for 4-year-old Michael Rangel just after 3am. They say he was taken from his mother's home on Robmore Street in north Houston Tuesday afternoon, allegedly by the mother's boyfriend, 39-year-old Jorge Gomez.

According to Houston police, Gomez took the boy because he was angry with the child's mother. He was reportedly in contact wth her, telling her that he would not return the child.

Michael was found a couple hours later along Avenue C at 65th Street on Houston's East End, which is about 15 to 20 miles away from where he was reported missing. The boy, along with Gomez, was found sitting on a couch in the middle of the street. It was a couch that was being thrown out by resident Mayra Gomez.

"I feel so bad for the little boy. I have kids, too, you know, and I feel bad," said Mayra. "Strange that they were on our couch outside."

Residents in the area where Michael and Gomez were found say they don't know the little boy or the man accused of taking him.

Gomez was taken into custody without incident and is now charged with kidnapping.

We'll continue to update you on Eyewitness News and abc13.com as additional details become available.

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Mom of kids found on school bus got to visit with children at custody hearing Friday

  SPLENDORA, TX (KTRK) -- A mother whose children were found living alone in a bus while she was in prison got to see her children.

Sherrie Shorten saw her 11-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son at a custody hearing Friday in Montgomery County. Shorten just got out of prison and is trying to get custody of her children.

The girl and boy were found living alone in a school bus in Splendora. The bus has electricity and running water. The children are in foster care for the time being.

"Went very good. Kids are very excited. They were asking when they can come home and when they can, you know, be back with mom and dad. And they're healthy, they're happy, they're like I said very excited," Shorten said.

She says is fixing up the bus so she can reunite with her kids.

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Mom whose kids were found alone on a school bus seeks to regain custody

SPLENDORA, TX (KTRK) -- The woman who left her two children to live alone on a modified school bus while she served time in prison is now out, and defending her actions.

The bus was supposed to be temporary housing until a permanent home could be built. But prison for the parents changed all that. The mother is free now, her children are gone.

Sherrie Shorten is now back in Splendora after more than a year in a Louisiana prison, convicted of embezzlement. But it's not been the homecoming she wanted.

"What you're seeing now is the condition we left it in when we went to jail and I realize we've been gone 16 months, but I spent eight days cleaning," Sherrie said.

Two months ago, what had been a quiet existence for an 11-year-old girl and her five-year-old brother living on a converted bus, cared for at night by a 60-year-old aunt who worked to support them, was suddenly put on the public radar. It was all because of what a postal carrier reported to authorities.

"I thought they were probably abandoned," the worker said at the time.

They were not, but the living conditions were described as deplorable. Now, after scrubbing and cleaning the bus that serves as a home, Shorten said the conditions in which her children and their aunt lived were not exaggerated and she could do nothing about it from prison, giving her an empty feeling.

Now the interior is tidy. The trash in the yard will be picked up. Shorten says she isn't employed, but her job is getting her children back from CPS foster care.

"I want them back home before they go back to school in September so there's an easy transition," she said.

Shorten wants to go to work, generate an income, find an apartment -- anything she says she needs to do to win custody. Next week, for the first time in more than a year she'll see her children, rather than talking to them by phone. The first thing she expects to do...

"Probably cry... Probably cry," she said.

Shorten's legal problems have not ended. Recently a relative accused her of stealing a tax refund check -- something she denies.

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SWAT standoff ends with two men in custody

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Two murder suspects are now in police custody after some tense moments Monday morning. The men held SWAT officers in a standoff for about four hours at an apartment complex in southwest Houston.

Police are now interviewing all six people who were hiding out in that apartment, but they are calling the standoff a huge success. It ended in the arrest of two men they considered armed and dangerous. But one suspect is still on the loose.

Residents at the Forum Plaza apartment complex received a very frightening and very early wake up call at about 2:30am, one that left them stranded outside.

"They told us they didn't want us to move away from the breezeway because they didn't want anybody to get hurt over there," said resident Crystal Cunningham.

Officers say six people, including Joshua Horhn, 20, and Cedric Johnson-Franklin, 21 -- both wanted on capital murder charges -- were hiding inside an apartment, ignoring police demands.

"They were trying to serve a warrant and knocking on the door identifying themselves as police officers; they refused to open the door or come outside," said HPD Spokesperson John Cannon.

The murder in question happened at 3:45am Saturday on Dairy Brook where two people -- 24-year-old Treaon Bush and 21-year-old Tremaine Burnett -- were killed and a third person injured. The three suspects were described only as black males seen leaving the area in a newer model, black, four-door BMW sedan with a sunroof.

Not knowing whether the men charged or anyone else in the apartment was armed, officers banged on resident's doors, moving them out of harm's way.

"It's really safer to get everybody out of here, stray bullets and all. Can't tell you what's going on, but we need y'all to leave," said resident Tyrone Williams.

A SWAT team was called in, and using the loud speaker, the team finally negotiated a surrender without violence, ending what was a four-hour ordeal. Police and residents agree it had the best possible outcome.

"Any time you have murder suspects who are considered armed and dangerous you never know what's going to happen and thankfully it ended peacefully," Cannon said.

Investigators are still seeking information on the third unknown suspect and the BMW seen leaving the Dairy Brook scene.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

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Texas City shelter owner accused of neglect loses custody of cats

LA MARQUE, TX (KTRK) -- After dozens of cats were seized from the Whiskerville Animal Shelter in Galveston County, a judge decided on Tuesday what to do with all the animals.

The hearing lasted several hours but after emotional testimony, the judge ruled the shelter's owner, Wydell Dixon, should not get her cats back.

Dixon doesn't dispute the fact that her Whiskerville cat shelter was found in deplorable conditions.

"This was your facility, wasn't it?" the prosecutor asked Dixon.

"Yes it was," she replied.

"This is was your passion?"

"Yes and it still is."

"And these were your babies?"

"Yes, they were."

But she and her attorney argue it was one of Dixon's employees who let the shelter fall apart while she was away for a month. Prosecutors, though, feel differently. Galveston County Animal Control officers testified that the shelter was in horrendous shape.

"Lots and lots of cats that were skins and bones, matted. The floors, walls, tables, doorknobs -- everything -- was covered in feces, urine," animal control officer Amy Snider said.

The county wanted to take away the cats permanently, and Tuesday's court hearing brought out dozens of cat lovers who felt the same way, including Dixon's own estranged daughter, Tammy Vosburg.

"I personally know several people who are waiting to adopt them, they're waiting for them to be released," Vosburg said.

Those cats are being cared for at several area animal shelters. Tuesday's ruling clears the way for the cats to eventually get adopted.

Authorities says the investigation into the shelter, its owners and workers isn't owner yet.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Three teens in custody after police chase

Three teens were arrested following a police chase in a stolen car

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Three teenagers are in custody and two more are still on the run after police say they lead officers on a chase through Houston's south side.

It all started when police tried to pull over a car at Berry and Dowling. The driver took off on Highway 288 and it all ended several miles later, off Alsace and La Salette. That's when police say the five teenagers -- all 14 years old -- jumped out and tried to run away. Officers caught three of them.

Police say the car they were driving had been reported stolen yesterday.

While responding to that police chase., one officer was rear-ended. It happened on the South Freeway at Holcombe. The officer went to take the exit ramp from Highway 288 when a yellow car came up behind him and slammed into the back end, sending the police car into a spin.

The officer was not hurt. But the driver of the car had to be taken to the hospital.

Witnesses say she was simply not paying attention and hit the officer by accident.

(Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Two in custody after chase in north Harris Co.

Two suspects are in custody after a police chase in north Harris County.

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Two burglary suspects are in custody after a police chase in north Harris County.

According to Precinct 4 Constable's Office, a deputy spotted a suspicious vehicle and tried to stop it. The vehicle fled and the deputy pursued for around five minutes. The suspects eventually bailed out along Hollow Tree near Gulf Pines at an apartment complex.

Two suspects are in custody and deputies say they are searching at least three more. No shots were fired, according to Precinct 4. Deputies say stolen merchandise was found in their vehicle and jewelry was found in the pockets of the two captured.

Stay with Eyewitness News and abc13.com for the latest on this story.

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Woman now in custody for unusual hit-and-run wreck

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A woman is now in custody after police say she hit a local high school student with her car, left him a religious pamphlet and took off.

We told you on Monday that Aida Hillen was charged with felony failure to stop and render aid for the accident. We're told Hillen turned herself in at about 5pm Monday, shortly after our report aired.

Investigators say back in October, she hit a 15-year-old student trying to cross Broadway in front of Milby High School in southeast Houston, left the pamphlet and took off.

The student suffered bruised ribs, but is otherwise OK

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Police investigating man's death while in custody

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Houston police are investigating the death of a man at the downtown jail.

According to police, Deltric Deon Caldwell, 39,was arrested in the early morning hours on Sunday in the parking lot of a strip center for possession of narcotics and tampering with evidence. Caldwell was medically screened by HFD paramedics, transported to HPD Central Jail at 61 Riesner Street and later became unresponsive. He was discovered at about 5:50am and HFD paramedics were called to the scene.

Caldwell was transported to Ben Taub General Hospital where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy by the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences will determine his cause of death

The incident is being investigated as an in-custody death since it occurred in the presence of HPD personnel. As is customary in such cases, the incident is being investigated by the HPD Homicide and Internal Affairs Divisions.

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Police chase ends with two in custody

A police chase ended with two in custody after a crash on the northwest side

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Eyewitness News was on the scene of a police chase that began Thursday morning on the northwest side.

Police were looking for stolen cars in a motel parking lot when two suspects with warrants fled. The chase ended near Ella and Haverhill when the suspects crashed their vehicle and ran into a nearby apartment complex. They were quickly arrested after trying to break into a woman's apartment. (Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Standoff at bar ends with no suspect in custody

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A SWAT team surrounded a southwest Houston bar for hours this morning after they believed an armed man was holed up inside. But that suspect managed to slip away.

It happened at the Cozy Corner bar on Burdine near West Bellfort. The business owner tells Eyewitness News she got a call around 2:20am from one of her employees who was shaking, scared and nervous. She says the employee was walking to her car when she was approached by the armed suspect.

The employee told her boss she believed this was the same suspect who robbed the bar four times before. She says the suspect showed her the shotgun, and demanded that she go inside and get into the safe. The boss said since they've been robbed four times before, she had taken the key to the safe, meaning the employee couldn't get into it. That's when the suspect reportedly took off.

Because it had been robbed so many times, police say an HPD tactical team was set up doing undercover surveillance on the bar.

"She called police reporting that she'd been robbed and she then came outside. Now the surveillance team had been observing the bar the whole time and they have not seen the suspect come back out," said spokesperson Kese Smith with the Houston Police Department. "So SWAT was called out and they are attempting to make contact with the suspect. The female bartender is unharmed and obviously we have some questions we want to ask her."

The bar owner looked at surveillance video with police. It appeared the suspect was in and out in about 30 minutes, and was able to get out without being captured by police. The bar worker wasn't injured, but is afraid the armed man may be back to target the business again.

Stay with Eyewitness News and abc13.com for the latest on this developing story.

(Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Suspect in custody after dangerous rush-hour chase

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A suspect was arrested after leading authorities on a long, winding chase throughout Houston during rush hour Monday.

SkyEye HD was over the scene as the driver led authorities on a high-speed chase that lasted more than 30 minutes. The chase started around 5:30pm on Cullen in Pearland as a routine traffic stop by the Brazoria County Sheriff's Office, but the suspect fled because he allegedly had drugs in his vehicle. Other law enforcement agencies joined in the pursuit of a 2003 red Saturn SUV, which first sped northbound on Highway 288, then onto Highway 59 southbound. The vehicle exited the freeway at Newcastle and drove west on Richmond throughout parts southwest Houston. SkyEye HD caught him making several turns and darting in and out of oncoming traffic. He shot across traffic and missed a pedestrian by mere inches. Minutes later, an officer smashed into the back of the SUV, hoping to end the chase but it just sent the SUV into oncoming traffic. The driver then made his way into the Memorial area. According to SkyEye HD's Andy Bass, the suspect was traveling at speeds in excess of 75mph on Memorial Drive in west Houston. The chase eventually ended around 6:10pm in a neighborhood cul-de-sac on Quail Creek Court in the Memorial area. Pursuing officers had their guns drawn as the lone suspect got out of the vehicle and surrendered. He was arrested without incident. Police say the suspect threw out 21 pounds of marijuana during the chase and found an additional 15 pounds in the car. The suspect has been identified as 46-year-old Roy Salmon. He is facing charges of evading and possession. He also possibly could face a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon because authorities say he allegedly slammed on his breaks so a squad car behind him would hit him. (Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

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