SAN ANTONIO — Law enforcement arrested a suspect early Tuesday who allegedly drove at Texas Department of Public Safety agents as they were investigating a potentially stolen car in northwest San Antonio, before leading them on a chase.
No DPS personnel were harmed, according to Sgt. Deon Cockrell. It also isn't believed anyone was hit when an agent fired at the vehicle as it "accelerated" towards them in the parking lot of a Motel 6 in the area of Interstate 10 and Wurzbach. The Texas Rangers are investigating the incident, which has been categorized as an "officer-involved shooting" since a DPS agent fired their weapon.
"When the vehicle’s coming, that is a deadly act," Cockrell said. "So the agent’s allowed to defend or do what’s necessary to save himself or anybody else in the vicinity.”
Cockrell said it started around 10:20 a.m. when the undercover agents noticed a car that came back as being possibly stolen and started tracking it. The suspect initially left the motel before returning, which is when the incident unfolded.
It's unknown exactly how many shots were fired by the agent, who hasn't been identified. The suspect initially fled the scene sending law enforcement on a pursuit to locate and arrest him. He was eventually taken into custody around 12:30 a.m. in the 6000 block of De Zavala Road on the northwest side of town.
The driver, 26-year-old Chase McDonald, is charged with several felonies and was booked into the Bexar County jail for multiple arrest warrants. The 17-year-old passenger was arrested on a misdemeanor juvenile warrant.