HOUSTON — Houston police are searching for a suspect who was caught on surveillance video allegedly shooting another man to death 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 family as 41-year-old Fernando Villareal.
According to HPD, Villareal was shot outside the gas station at around 12:40 p.m. Police have only described the suspect as a man wearing a dark hoodie and shorts.
In surveillance video obtained by KHOU 11 News, the suspect can seen with a gun in his hands during an apparent argument with Villareal.
After the suspect fires his weapon, he runs away to an unknown location as Villareal lies 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 of the chest."
From a preliminary investigation, HPD determined that Villareal and the suspect knew each other and spent more than three hours together at the gas station before the shooting.
However, it's unclear how long the two men might have been acquainted.
In the surveillance video, the two men can be seen inside the gas station playing electronic gambling machines and casually talking to each other minutes before the shooting.
After they leave the machines, the two men approach the front counter and then walk outside together. The suspect appears to check his wallet before the two men round a corner and begin to argue. That's when shots are fired.
Villareal's brother tells KHOU 11 his family want justice for their loved on.
"I hope he [the suspect] gets what he deserves," Joel Villareal said. "According to police he's only 18 to 25, somewhere in between, he threw his life away and he left my family super hurt over nothing."
At this time, there is no known motive for the shooting. Police believe the suspect lives near the scene of the shooting, around Telephone Road and the Gulf Freeway.
On Wednesday, police released four additional surveillance photos of the suspect.
Anyone with information on the identity of the suspect is urged to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or speak anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.