The Department of Public Safety’s Sergeant Bryan Witt reports Joshua Omar Garcia, 24 of Lamesa is dead after trying to escape arrest following a chase in Tahoka Monday morning. At approximately 11 a.m., deputies report a Lynn County Sheriff’s deputy tried to make a routine traffic stop in Tahoka. The suspect, driving a dark gray car, sped away, leading the deputy on a chase north into Wilson, then south into Lynn County.
An undercover Lynn County Sheriff’s Department vehicle slammed his cruiser into the suspect’s car near FM 1054 and US 380, six miles east of Tahoka.
The suspect was taken into custody and placed into another Lynn County Sheriff’s SUV, but while the officers were inspecting the suspect’s car, deputies report the manacled suspect pulled his hands from behind his back to the front of his body. He then jumped into the front and attempted to steal and make a getaway with the SUV. He was able to drive a short ways away before a Lynn County deputy opened fire, wounding the man.
The suspect was taken by ambulance to Tahoka, then flown to UMC by Aerocare. UMC spokesman Eric Finley reports that the male gunshot victim was transported to UMC by Aerocare, and was pronounced dead at 2:48 p.m. Monday afternoon.
The Texas Rangers are investigating the incident. According to the Lynn County Sheriff’s Department, two deputies involved in the incident are currently on administrative leave. The names of any party involved have not yet been released.
This makes the third officer-involved shooting in our area in the past four days. A Hobbs police officer wounded two suspected reportedly fighting over a rifle at a bar early Saturday morning. Also, the Levelland PD was involved in the shooting death of a man during a domestic disturbance call Friday.
