Surveillance video released after manhunt for armed men near Bush Airport ends

HOUSTON – Police have called off the search near George Bush Intercontinental Airport for three armed men who led them on a chase early Thursday morning.

Though police are no longer scouring the area, they are still looking for two of the three men suspected of being involved in the incident. 

Houston police shared a post on Twitter saying one of the men had been taken into custody at 8:40 a.m., Thursday.

Shenandoah police said 17-year-old Tomell Thomas was arrested and will be booked into the Montgomery County Jail.

There is no word if he is the same man police believe carjacked an SUV from a family at a Valero Station about a mile and a half from the airport.

WATCH: Dashcam video of chase near Bush Airport on Sept. 27, 2018

A 13-year-girl who was inside the vehicle told KPRC2 she was waiting with the car running while her dad and brother were in the store when the man jumped into the driver's seat and told her to get out or he would "hurt her." 

“A man had jumped in the car, then he was like, ‘Get out the car before I hurt you,’ and that's when he hurried up and drove over there,” said the girl.

According to authorities, the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office responded to a call about a robbery at the Denny's near Research and IH-45 in Shenandoah around 3:40 a.m., Thursday.

Two men walked inside the restaurant wearing hoodies and carrying guns.

One man forced the manager to the safe and the register and demanded she fill a bag with money, while the other man forced an employee to the ground, stole her cellphone and targeted an elderly couple, police said.

"We went outside to stop this guy but he was already gone," Valero employee Karim-Ali Sunesara said.

“The other suspect went into the dining room and accosted an elderly couple and demanded, at gunpoint, money and jewelry from that couple. They refused,” said Assistant Chief Barry Greshan, with the Shenandoah Police Department.

Investigators said an officer spotted the two men and a getaway driver leaving the restaurant in a 1999 white SUV.

The men led police on a chase, but before police could catch them, the men stole a silver Honda from a nearby business, police said.

The chase ended when the men crashed near JFK and Rankin and ran into the woods, police said.

Other agencies, including Houston police, Harris County sheriff's deputies and State Troopers, arrived at the scene of the crash to help authorities search for the men.

Police are warning anyone headed to or from the airport to keep an eye out for anyone who looks suspicious and to alert the authorities.


About the Author:

Daniela Sternitzky-Di Napoli has been a digital news editor at KPRC 2 since 2018. She is a published poet and has background in creative writing and journalism. Daniela has covered events like Hurricane Harvey and the Astros World Series win. In her spare time, Daniela is an avid reader and loves to spend time with her two miniature dachshunds.