A 90-year-old war veteran has passed away after allegedly being assaulted, shot, and subsequently run over by his own car during a carjacking incident in Houston, Texas.
90-year-old veteran run over during Houston carjacking
Houston Police said on Sunday that they are investigating the fatal incident, which occurred at approximately 12:45 p.m. on Saturday near Nelson Beckett’s residence.
According to a police statement, “HPD patrol officers responded to a report of an assault with a weapon at an independent living community.”
That’s where they discovered 90-year-old Nelson Beckett lying in the parking lot with gunshot wounds.
“Houston Fire Department paramedics responded to the scene and transported the man to an area hospital where he was pronounced deceased,” they added.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the victim “was at his vehicle and was approached by an unknown male suspect who assaulted him.”
The suspect then shot the elderly man, stole his belongings, and fled with the car, running over Beckett in the process.
The stolen vehicle was later found at another apartment complex where it was dumped by the suspect.
Police are looking for a black male who is estimated to be between 25 to 30 years old, in relation to the murder.
Authorities confirmed that there was no prior acquaintance between the suspect and the victim.
Authorities and family horrified by veteran’s carjacking death
Lieutenant Jonathan French of the Houston Police Department remarked, “This is just as pathetic as it gets. That’s all I’ll say.”
Beckett’s daughter, Tami Freund, shared that her father had served in the Navy and had five grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren, with one more great-grandbaby set to arrive.
“He loved big and loved his family so much,” she commented to Fox News. “To him, everyone had value, and he would do anything for anyone.”
Freund called her Christian father the kindest and funniest person she had ever encountered, noting that he enjoyed meeting new people and like to joke around with them.
Beckett spent his years after retirement in service to others, driving people to doctors appointments and church on Sunday.
According to a witness, Beckett didn’t go down without “a good fight” when he went out to run errands the day he was killed.
“I heard arguing, men arguing. And next thing I know, I heard a gunshot. So, I ducked back into my garage,” said neighbro Rod Bosson.
“He had his little shopping cart and a scuffle ensued,” Bosson told KHOU 11. “They say he put up a good fight. That’s when he got shot. As the suspect backed up, he hit (the victim).”
On Monday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott offered up a $10,000 to anyone who can help bring Beckett’s killer to justice.
“Cecilia and I are deeply saddened to hear of the murder of 90-year-old Navy vet Nelson Beckett in Houston,’ Abbott commented to Click 2 Houston. “Our hearts go out to his family and loved ones, and the entire Houston community during this difficult time.”
He said that the state is already providing the government’s full support to local law enforcement partners to find the carjacker.
“Texas will always support the brave men and women who answered the call to serve in our nation’s military, and with the public’s help, we will capture the murderer and put them behind bars,” Abbott added.
New Jersey sunbather run over by beach patrol
Elsewhere, a woman sunbathing on a beach in New Jersey last week was hit by a police vehicle in a tragic accident.
The incident occurred on Wednesday at Wildwood beach in New Jersey, when the sunbather was run over by the vehicle.
A witness described hearing screams from horrified beachgoers attempting to stop the officer driving the Ford F-150 after he had run over the woman.
“They were the ones who sprung to action,” Simone Rose told NJ.com. “People were just screaming, ‘You hit somebody! Somebody’s under your truck! Stop!'”
Rose said the cop didn’t realize he had hit the woman until the crowd surrounded his truck, which is when he got out of it.
She explained that the people around the truck were able to collectively lift the front of the truck off of the woman, who had been laying on a towel while her boyfriend took a dip in the water.
“The woman appeared to be moving, but she seemed to be severely injured, as you can imagine,” another witness reported.
Fire rescue personnel loaded the woman onto a backboard and rushed her to a waiting ambulance, where she was transported to a local hospital.
She reportedly suffered broken ribs, three fractured vertebrae, and is experiencing lung issues, but is expected to live.
The incident is being internally investigated by Wildwood police, who would not comment on the ongoing investigation beyond the police chief’s initial remarks to the press.
Wildwood Police Chief Joseph Murphy said the unnamed officer, who is typically assigned to patrol the beach, was responding to an ordinance violation at the time.
“The officer was down there in performance of his duties on a call for service,” Murphy remarked. “Horrifically, he ran over a victim who was lying on the beach.”
“There was a lot of help from people on the beach,” he noted. “The civilians on the beach did an incredible job.”
One onlooker noted that the “Wildwood police officer ran this lady over on the beach while he was swerving in and out of the beach, way too close.”
“No one understands why the cop was driving in a crowded beach so close to where everyone was!” witness Ryan Cortes seethed.
