Suspect killed, Garland officer wounded after shooting call escalates into ambushes, police say
An early Monday morning shooting call in Garland escalated into multiple ambushes across a neighborhood over two hours, during which a suspect shot an officer after allegedly telling witnesses he would "make officers kill him," police said.
Just after midnight, officers responded to reports of gunshots in the 100 block of West Wanda Drive, near South First Street.
Two officers were ambushed as they arrived at the scene, police said. Garland Police Chief Jeff Bryan said they did not have time to exit their vehicle and were unable to return fire. Still, they managed to escape the ambush, Bryan said.
Bryan said one police patrol was struck multiple times and a projectile shattered the windshield. The other Garland police vehicle was pierced by a round, which passed through an officer's leg and entered the officer's other leg, Bryan explained. The wounded officer was able to get to a supermarket a few minutes drive away to wait for help.
Officers applied tourniquets and the agent was quickly taken to a nearby hospital. Bryan said he is expected to recover.
Meanwhile, the suspect, later identified as 23-year-old Bernardo Mares Jr, fled the scene in a white pickup truck, police said.
According to police, one officer traveling west on Margarita was caught off guard by a second ambush by Mares. He had parked the truck he fled in and taken a concealed position behind a parked car. He opened fire and hit the officer's vehicle, Bryan said. The officer took cover, reinforcements arrived and the exchange of gunfire ensued.
Bryan said Mares fled between houses on foot and was tracked to a residence on West Wanda, where he had a family connection to the house. The chief said family members were inside and all were safely evacuated.
The chief said as family members were being evacuated, Mares charged from the house while pointing an object at officers in a "shooter stance," and multiple officers fired simultaneously, striking Mares. Bryan said the object pointed at officers may have been a magazine from one of the guns.
Mares was also taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
"We could be right now planning five officers' funerals. We had five squad cars hit. This could have gone completely different," Bryan said.
Bryan said they do not know what prompted Mares to engage in this behavior and attempt to kill multiple officers; however, witnesses told police Mares indicated would not go to jail and that he would force officers to kill him.
"It was a very terrifying night, I'll tell you that," said Lesli Zavala, who lives in the neighborhood. "Our family couldn't sleep at all. We were scared. I heard the gunshots, and my heart started racing. I felt so, so afraid. My sister was sleeping and she said the moment she heard a bunch of gunshots, she crouched down under her bed."
All eight officers involved are on administrative leave with multiple investigations ongoing, including one by the District Attorney's Office.
Bryan said the injured officer has been with Garland PD for one year. He was previously a detention officer in New York.
The chief said he spoke to the officer early Monday morning and he is in good spirits.
