31-year-old leads deputies on chase after firing shots at driver on US-59 near downtown, HCSO says

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A gunman was arrested after allegedly firing shots at another driver on a busy Houston highway Tuesday afternoon, according to authorities.

The Harris County Sheriff’s Office said deputies are investigating the road rage shooting after a driver was shot at on U.S. 59 near downtown Houston.

Luckily, the man wasn’t struck by any bullets, and his truck took the shots instead.

The victim told Eyewitness News that he immediately drove past the shooting suspect after the incident, called 911, and simultaneously saw a Harris County deputy on the highway.

He said he began honking at the deputy to get his attention, put his window down, and told him about what just happened.

The deputy spotted the suspect, identified as 31-year-old Ariel Reynosa Flores, and tried to pull him over.

The sheriff’s office said Flores refused to stop and initiated a chase.

Flores struck two other cars before getting out of his vehicle near N. MacGregor and Almeda and running away from deputies, according to investigators.

The brief chase came to an end near Hermann Park, and deputies arrested Flores. The sheriff’s office said thankfully no one was injured in the series of events.

It is unclear what led to the shooting, but deputies said they’re investigating the case as a road rage shooting.

According to public records, this wasn’t the 31-year-old’s first run-in with the law. Records show Flores has at least seven mugshots dating all the way back to 2010.

Recently, Flores agreed to a two-year prison sentence for a felon in possession of a weapon charge back in September 2022, according to documents.

Criminal records from the Department of Public Safety show that Flores filed for parole in May 2023, which was expected to end in June 2024.

During his arrest on Tuesday, deputies found he had an open parole violation warrant for the felon in possession of a weapon charge.

Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said Flores is facing new charges of aggravated assault and evading arrest after Tuesday’s shooting.

Maj. Saul Suarez, with the HCSO Criminal Investigations Bureau, told Eyewitness News they’re seeing more cases of road rage in the county.

Suarez said incidents on the road can turn deadly quickly and urges drivers not to get involved in incidents and try to de-escalate situations.

“Just imagine being in a situation where somebody all of a sudden starts shooting at you. (This driver was) so very fortunate, very fortunate our deputy was at the right place at the right time,” he said. “We’re seeing more of (these cases), and I think that’s just because people are more quick to carry a weapon or pull it out with a situation like that.”