A man suspected of murdering three people crashed his car into a Buc-ee’s, then shot himself in the head.
Christopher Kyle Reid Jr., a 29-year-old from Hubbard, crashed into Buc-ee’s in Ennis during the early hours of October 17 before shooting himself, according to the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office. He was suspected of committing a triple homicide in Mabank just hours before.
Reid smashed his way into the southwest entrance of Buc-ee’s at 5 a.m., according to a statement from the Ennis Police Department. He was in a 2003 Dodge Caravan, which struck and pinned a woman against a sales display.
Once the van stopped, he shot himself in the head.
Responders brought Reid to a hospital with critical injuries, according to the release. They also brought the woman, an Oklahoman who was passing through, to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Just hours earlier, at 2:30 a.m., Henderson County deputies responded to a shooting on Taos Drive in Mabank, according to the sheriff’s office. When they arrived, they found multiple victims. Three were pronounced dead.
The deceased included 51-year-old Kimberly Simpson, 72-year-old Connie Patrick, and 57-year-old Ronny Hammonds. Simpson and Patrick were shot multiple times, while Hammond was shot, struck, and stabbed.
Paramedics brought two more victims – 24-year-old Colton Reid and 70-year-old Henry Hopgood – to the University of Texas Health in Tyler. Reid was stable, but Hopgood was critical.
The suspect, Christopher Reid, was in critical condition at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas as of October 18, per the sheriff’s office.
Henderson County deputies are investigating these incidents alongside the Texas Rangers, the Henderson County District Attorney’s Office, and Ennis police.
“We are deeply saddened by this incident and stand with all those involved as our community heals,” said officials with Ennis police.