Suspect charged after shooting injures two Precinct 4 deputies in Humble

Gunfire at The Pavilion at the Groves apartment complex in Humble wounded two Harris County Precinct 4 deputy constables and sent bullets into nearby apartments, turning a late-night response into a dangerous standoff just outside Beltway 8. Authorities charged 38-year-old Edgar Villegas with aggravated assault of a police officer and public servant after they said he opened fire on Deputies Dante Zepeda and George Esparza as they answered reports of a man walking through the complex with a shotgun.

Zepeda was struck in the hip and upper arm, while Esparza was hit at the scene and stayed there for treatment. Officials said both deputies suffered injuries that were not life-threatening. Zepeda was released from the hospital on Sunday, June 22, 2026, and Constable Mark Herman called his progress “a milestone” while asking the community to keep him and his family in their thoughts.

Dispatchers received multiple calls shortly after 10 p.m. Friday, June 20, about a man firing a shotgun at the apartment complex in the 15900 block of Woodland Hills Drive. When deputies arrived, investigators said they encountered an armed man carrying a shotgun and gunfire broke out. The suspect then retreated into an apartment, triggering a SWAT response that stretched into the night.

SWAT officers later used CS gas to end the standoff, and a police K-9 helped take Villegas into custody after he barricaded himself inside. Villegas was treated at a hospital after being bitten by the K-9 and remained under police guard Sunday until he could be booked into the Harris County Jail. A preliminary court appearance was scheduled for June 22.

For neighbors in the apartment complex, the shooting was not just an officer-involved case but a direct threat inside a residential community. One neighbor said bullets pierced her apartment and damaged multiple rooms, including the kitchen and a closet, underscoring how quickly the exchange of gunfire put residents, deputies and anyone nearby at risk.