HOUSTON – A wanted man accused of hitting and killing a woman waiting at a Houston bus stop while fleeing law enforcement Wednesday has now been charged with murder.
Joseph Jebbia, 43, is currently in the Harris County Jail. Court records show Jebbia is also charged with aggravated kidnapping in a June 22 case where he allegedly abducted a woman at gunpoint. He is also charged with unlawful possession of body armor by a felon as well as unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.
The Houston Police Department says deputies with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office tried to conduct a traffic stop on Jebbia, who was driving a red Chevrolet Tahoe. They followed him to a gas station at Airline Drive and West Mount Houston Road. When they activated their emergency lights, Jebbia began to evade them, driving away at a high rate of speed.
Police say Jebbia ran a red light at the intersection of the North Freeway service road and West Road and struck a white Toyota Camry. The driver of the Camry was not hurt.
Jebbia then drove onto the curb and struck the woman waiting at the bus stop. The 61-year-old woman, identified by the Harris County Medical Examiner as Carrie Mae Mitchell, died at the scene.
Jebbia kept going after hitting the woman, driving onto the North Freeway, going southbound in the northbound lanes and striking the vehicle of the pursuing Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office deputy, who was not injured in the collision. The suspect was eventually stopped and apprehended by Harris County Sheriff’s Office deputies in the Willowbrook area.
The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office says Jebbia had a loaded assault rifle, body armor, and a large amount of what appeared to be fentanyl in his vehicle when he was finally stopped.
In a court appearance Thursday night, Jebbia’s bond was set at a combined $350,000 for all of the charges against him.