HOUSTON — Houston police are trying to find the man who robbed a couple leaving the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo and shot one of the victims, investigators said.
The couple told Houston police they walked back to their car after attending the Rodeo only to find it had been broken into. The car was parked near Interchange Drive just south of the 610 South Loop, not at an official HLSR paid lot.
Police said the couple was checking out the damage to their vehicle when a man walked up and asked to use their phone. They said no, so he walked away.
“A few minutes later, he returned with a handgun and demanded the cross-body bag off of our male victim,” HPD Lt. Riley said. “There was a tussle, and the suspect shot the victim at least twice in the torso."
The 61-year-old victim was rushed to a hospital where he was last reported to be stable.
The suspect ran away and left a shoe behind. There is no word yet on whether the car burglary and armed robbery are connected but police are investigating.
We reached out to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo for comment and they sent us the following statement.
"We first want to say that we are saddened to hear about the incident last night and hope for the quick recovery of the victim involved. It's important to clarify that this incident did not take place on the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo property. We highly encourage our guests to park in our official Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo parking lots for convenience and safety. You can view all of our official Rodeo parking lots at RODEOHOUSTON.com. All of our parking lots are equipped with 24-hour security measures, which include police officers and cameras. We are constantly communicating with our local authorities and want to assure all guests at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo that safety is always our highest priority."
If you have any information about this case call HPD or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS (8477).
Parking
If you drive to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, there are paid lots closer to NRG where there will be plenty of people coming and going. You can purchase parking in advance at rodeohouston.com.
Here's a map of the parking lots. They charge $25 and the Yellow Lot is cashless. There's also parking in the old Astroworld lot off the South Loop.
We recommend downloading the RodeoHouston app for up-to-the-minute updates on which lots are full. You can also find the parking lot status here.
Some lots have shuttles that will take you to NRG Park.
Other options include METRORail, Park & Ride and rideshares.