Man arrested after gun goes off inside downtown Houston bus station

HOUSTON – A suspect is in custody following a shooting inside the Greyhound bus station in downtown Houston.

It happened just before 8 a.m. Thursday in the bus terminal at Main Street and Webster.

Houston police said a man with an Oklahoma state ID was able to pass through security and bring a loaded weapon to the waiting area. 

"The suspect was putting a weapon inside his pocket. It went off, said Orlando Gomez with the Houston Police Department. "It hit the ground."

Officials said the bullet ricocheted off the concrete and grazed another passenger sitting next to the man. That passenger was treated at the scene.

Police responded to the bus station and arrested the man with the gun.

Officers said they are not sure why the man was handling a gun in the first place.

"He made it through check point," said Gomez. "I'm not sure how he made it through with the weapon, but it made it through the check point and once you get through there, you wait for your bus."

Local 2 checked with Greyhound officials who said there are not metal detectors in every terminal.

Officials said the downtown Houston terminal does not have metal detectors, but a hired guard uses a wand to check passengers for prohibited items.

Greyhound released the following statement following the incident:

"Greyhound has security cameras and security officers in our terminal around the clock in our Houston location and the company has an excellent safety record. It is not optional for us to have metal detectors in the doorways of our buses because  we have so many rest stops and bus stops, and our drivers are not armed. However, Greyhound does provide random wanding of customers at terminals across the country including Houston. As a ground transportation provider, Greyhound is more like a train, transit bus system or subway than it is air travel. With the thousands of locations intercity bus serves, we work diligently to provide safe transportation to those traveling across rural America.

"We do not allow alcohol, drugs, firearms or weapons on our buses. If we discover a customer is breaking company policy, we call the police immediately. We have a zero tolerance policy with respect to unruly or threatening behavior. Our terminal employees and drivers have heightened sensitivity to suspicious behaviors and prohibited items and will notify local law enforcement authorities if any suspicious activities or unaccompanied packages are observed.

"Greyhound is cooperating fully with the local authorities and will provide any assistance they need."