Houston police appear to be walking back key details after officers responding to masked intruder call shoot 911 caller’s relative

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The Houston Police Department asked if a man shot by officers in an apartment hallway ever shot at them.

On Wednesday, HPD said it had evidence, but on Thursday officials said they were investigating to determine if he fired the shots.

In Ring doorbell camera footage a resident sent to ABC13, officers respond to a burglary call rushing into the hallway inside Flats on Tanglewilde in west Houston.

“It sounded like firecrackers, like ‘Pop!'” one resident said.

Another resident, who did not feel safe showing her face or giving her name, said she heard the gunshots.

“I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’ We heard the gunshots, it was literally around the corner,” she said.

Neighbors pointed to a now-closed door as the apartment where police were called. Law enforcement said the resident saw masked people entering her unit through the doorbell video. The resident called the police and a relative.

ORIGINAL STORY: Woman’s claim of 3 masked people leads HPD to open fire on apartment complex, police say

Police told ABC13 on Wednesday that when they arrived, the armed relative was already there and had shot at them, prompting officers to return fire.

“He raised his firearm and discharged his weapon at the officers, and we have evidence to support that. The officer returned fire. They fired their weapons multiple times,” the deputy chief of police said Wednesday. HPD, Yasar Bashir.

However, in a press release issued Thursday, they walked back that information, saying that when officers arrived, they saw a person matching the description of the intruders.

Police said when they told him to stop, they saw he had a gun pointed in their direction and so fired. They are now investigating whether the 19-year-old fired his weapon at any point during the altercation.

The relative was shot in the leg and taken to the hospital.

Bullet holes, evidence of the shooting, were left on the ceiling, on the walls and in the door jambs.

“There are some in the corner, others on the side. Four is a bit excessive,” says a neighbor.

ABC13 counted at least a dozen bullet holes.

The robberies and shootings, residents said, could have been avoided if management had heeded their warnings that the exterior doors no longer closed.

“The doors need to be fixed. We need something. We pay too much money to live here and we don’t have any of this,” one resident said.

As of Thursday evening, authorities had not filed charges. It takes 30 days for police to release body-worn camera video.

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