Texas man kills roommate, fires flurry of gunfire at police, then kills himself

An elderly San Antonio man killed his roommate early Friday and then fired dozens of shots at responding police, keeping officers pinned down before the shooter killed himself, the city’s police chief said. city.

“He probably fired in 20 minutes, probably 100 rounds,” Police Chief Bill McManus said. The first police car on the scene was hit 40 times, he said.

The violence unfolded shortly after 2:30 a.m. when someone called police and said a man had killed his roommate, McManus said.

When officers arrived at the building, the man fired from the doorway, he said.

No officers were injured and one officer returned fire but did not hit the suspect.

The suspect, who was not immediately identified by police at the scene, committed suicide, McManus said. He was born in 1951, which makes him in his 60s, he said.

The shooter called someone he knew and said he had killed his roommate, and that man called the police, McManus said. The housemate’s body was later found inside the apartment along with that of the suspect, he said.

“He was shooting everywhere,” McManus said. A motive was under investigation.

Officers evacuated as many nearby homes as they could. No one else was injured, the police chief said.

SWAT officers and an armored vehicle were among those who responded to the scene, NBC affiliate WOAI of San Antonio reported. Negotiators attempted to contact the suspect, the station reported, but McManus said he did not contact them.