HOUSTON -- A Houston police officer, shot during a traffic stop, recovered enough Wednesday to speak to reporters and share how grateful he is that he survived the attack, Local 2 reported.

Video

Officer Shot Says He's Grateful That He Survived

"I thank God. God was with me that night," Officer Raul Montelongo said.

Slideshow: Images From The Scene

Montelongo, who has worked for the Houston Police Department for seven years, is alive and well, considering what happened to him early Friday morning.

"I clocked the suspect going 86 mph on the freeway. He exited the freeway for the traffic stop and after that is when I was shot," Montelongo said.

The officer was shot in the face at close range.

However, as the suspect fled the scene, Montelongo continued to work.

"I went into our training mode and picked up the PA and gave the description of the vehicle and direction of travel. Within a minute, there were officers already on the scene," Montelongo said.

The injured officer said he then called his father.

"I didn't want my wife to get a phone call from somebody else, so I called my dad while I was waiting for the ambulance -- called him to have him call her and let her know that I am alright and that I am going to survive," Montelongo said.

Police credit the officer's quick thinking for helping them make an arrest less than eight hours later.

Authorities arrested Wendell Roy Mitchell, 33, after finding him hiding inside an abandoned home in northeast Houston. He has been charged with attempted capital murder of a police officer and is behind bars without bond.

Montelongo was released from the hospital Tuesday after recovering from the shooting. Doctors removed bullet fragments from his face but have not yet determined if he will need surgery on his cheek.

The officer is expected to return to the streets soon.

"This is all he ever wanted to do. I wouldn't take that away from him," the officer's wife, Tamara Montelongo said.

Police said Mitchell has confessed to the shooting but refuses to give up the names of the other two men, who were passengers in the car when the shooting occurred.

Investigators want to talk with those men so they can get witness statements.