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As an infiltrator infiltrated in Fort Worth who had been injured in the head Friday morning by an alleged thief remained in critical condition, the Fort Worth Police released the name of the man suspected of him to have shot.
Dacion Steptoe was identified as the man killed on the scene by police, police chief Joel Fitzgerald said at a news conference at noon.
Fitzgerald also identified a second suspect, Samuel Mayfield, who was arrested shortly after the shooting.
The identity of the third suspect, originally described as a woman, was not disclosed. Fitzgerald said the suspect was actually a man and that he was still interrogated Friday afternoon.
The ages have not been released by the department.
Fitzgerald said Mayfield had active warrants for assault with bodily injury, possession of marijuana and theft when he was arrested.
Officer Garrett Hull, a 17-year-old department veteran, was one of the officers charged with the surveillance of three individuals suspected of being responsible for a series of increasingly violent robberies targeting Hispanic institutions since at least June.
Fitzgerald stated that the robbery investigators, the criminal intelligence unit and the special reaction teams were participating in the investigation.
"We did our best in this case," Fitzgerald said.
Under surveillance, police say the three suspects entered the Los Vaqueros sports bar at 403 W. Biddison Street and stole inside the bar.
As scared suspects and customers fled the bar, officers, including Hull, did a great job in differentiating between suspects and innocent customers, Fitzgerald said.
"I can not say enough about the level of heroism this morning," he said.
Police said the officers had confronted the suspects a short distance in the 3500 block of May Street.
"The suspects were trying to get into a vehicle," said the sergeant. Chris Britt said. "They could not do it, so they kept running."
At approximately 11:00 am, two vehicles were towed off May Street: a brown GMC Sierra truck and a blue Ford SUV. The rear window and the rear window of the SUV appeared to be fired.
Several uniformed police officers joined the prosecution when at least one of the suspects fired a firearm and began firing, hitting Hull, police said. Officer Bradley Perez stated that the bullet had entered Hull's forehead and had not come out.
The officers fought back, killing Steptoe while providing first aid to Hull, the chief said.
Perez told the Star-Telegram that there were 10 officers involved in the confrontation.
"There was chaos on the scene," Fitzgerald said at the press conference.
He attributed the "hard work" of the officers to the arrest of the suspects.
"We are not looking for anyone," he said. "We have our suspects in hand."
Fitzgerald said that every police meeting since the start of the flights, they talked about the three suspects.
"I can not say enough about the units involved in this process," he said. "It may have taken a little while to get these guys, but we had them … the collateral damage, that is, we have an officer fighting for his life."
Men have been linked to at least 17 cases. In a burglary – in El Corral on July 13 – a client was shot in the head. Some cases occurred outside the city limits. Two other victims were shot dead or shot dead, Fitzgerald said.
Police believe there are still other cases that have not been reported, perhaps because business owners feared scrutiny by the police. Fitzgerald encouraged any victim to contact the police or Crime Stoppers at 817-469-8477.
"He is the rock of this unit"
Fitzgerald said there had been no change in Hull's condition.
"The members of his family are with him now and at his side," he said.
Hull first worked for 10 years with the police department from 1999 to 2009, according to police spokesman Brad Perez.
He then left the department for two years but returned in 2011, said Perez.
He was welcomed with open arms, said the chef.
"He is the rock of this unit," Fitzgerald said. "It says a lot about a person."
Hull is a husband and father of two children.
Fitzgerald said everyone wants to be there for Hull's family, but he needs time to rest and take the time to "make decisions about his medical future."
Contribution: Nichole Manna and Gordon Dickson of the Star-Telegram
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