A Harris County sheriff ’s deputy was ambushed and killed while refueling his cruiser Friday night at a northwest Harris County service station.
Early Saturday, Harris County Sheriff Ron Hickman identified the slain deputy as Darren Goforth, 47, a 10-year department veteran.
In his 45 years in law enforcement, Hickman said he couldn’t “recall another incident so cold-blooded and cowardly.”
Officials with the sheriff ’s department said Go-forth had driven to the Chevron station at Telge and West after responding to a routine car accident about 30 minutes before.
“He was pumping into his vehicle ... and the male suspect came up behind him and shot the deputy multiple times,” said Deputy Thomas Gilliland at a press briefing.
“The deputy fell to the ground ... the suspect came over and shot the deputy again multiple times as he lay on the ground,” Gilliland said. The man fled west in a red or maroon Ford Ranger pickup
A witness called 911 and told dispatchers what had happened, bringing deputies racing to the site of the 8:20 p.m. shooting.
“EMS arrived on scene,” said Gilliland, his voice catching slightly. “Unfortunately, the deputy passed.”
“We are actively searching for suspect right now,” he continued, describing the man they are looking for as dark-complexioned, about 5 feet 10 to 6 feet tall, wearing a white T-shirt and red shorts. He is believed to be between 20 and 25 years old.
The shooting prompted an outpouring of grief and prayers from officers and public officials, including Gov. Greg Abbott, who tweeted: “Prayers Please for family of this Texas sheriff ’s deputy who was shot & killed Friday near Houston.”
There was no apparent motive for the killing as law enforcement continued to scour the area for the suspect early Saturday.
“I can tell you with diligence and justice the suspect will be caught, Gilli-land said. “And he will be brought to justice.”
Goforth was stationed in District 5 in northwest Harris County. Hickman said Goforth had a wife and two children.
Detectives were checking the station security camera to see if the video offers them any clues into Goforth’s slaying.
“It’s a very busy intersection. People come and go all the time,” Gilliland said.
He later was asked if he had any words for the gunman who killed his fellow deputy.
“Give yourself up. That’s what I have to say,” Gilliland said. “This is a very callous individual.”
Harris County sheriff ’s deputies, homicide investigators and officers from other agencies, including the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Houston Police Department, responded to the scene within minutes and began searching for the gunman.
Life Flight was originally dispatched to the scene but called back after first responders realized it was too late.
“This is a very tough moment right now for the Harris County Sheriff ’s Office,” Gilliland said. “Keep us in your prayers and in your thoughts.”
Harris County Judge Ed Emmett said he was informed of the slaying Friday night and had spoken with Hickman.
Stressing he did not know all the details, Emmett said, “It’s tragic; these are the men and women who put their lives on the line for us every day. This is a heartbreaking reminder of the dangers they face to protect us. My sincere thoughts and prayers are with his family.”
The shooting left deputies and local law enforcement reeling and comes a week after a Harris County jailer died during a confrontation with an inmate at the jail. And on Monday, the trial begins for the allegedly intoxicated driver who in 2014 smashed into the car Deputy Jesse Valdez was driving on his way to a welfare check.
The last time a sheriff ’s deputy was intentionally shot to death in the line of duty was Deputy Joseph Norman Dennis in May 2001.
Bob Goerlitz, president of the Harris County Deputies Organization, said, “The way this happened
– it wasn’t a family disturbance , he wasn’t chasing an armed suspect; this was cold-blooded murder.”
“We’ve been warned of things like this because of public sentiment nationally and events over the last few years,” Goerlitz said. “It’s just horrific. That’s the only way to describe it.”
Goerlitz said he’d met Goforth a few years after he joined the department and was one of Goforth’s instructors during his patrol training.
Goerlitz described the slain deputy as an “easygoing guy who wouldn’t hurt a fly.”
Late Friday, former Sheriff Adrian Garcia took to Twitter.
“The prayers of my family and I are with the entire Harris County Sheriff ’s Office and the family of our fallen deputy,” he said in a tweet. “I know that many hearts are heavy tonight.
