Three jailed after north Houston gas station shootout, drugs found

A north Houston gas station became a crime scene in seconds when a personal dispute escalated into a shootout in front of passing traffic, but patrol officers saw it unfold and stopped it before anyone was hit.

Houston police said the shooting happened around 11:20 p.m. Wednesday, April 15, near I-59 and Tidwell in the Eastex-Jensen area. Three people were taken to jail: a woman, her boyfriend and her ex-boyfriend. Officers on regular patrol were already nearby when the fight broke out, and police said that quick response kept the violence from spreading across the busy corridor.

According to police, the two men pulled out guns and shot at each other during the argument. ABC13 Houston reported that one of the suspected shooters ran away on foot and allegedly tossed a pistol before he was caught. The station also reported that the other alleged shooter tried to leave in a car with the woman, but officers stopped the vehicle. Police later found a gun, cocaine and heroin inside that car.

Houston police Lt. Willkens said back-up units were called to the gas station as the confrontation unfolded. KPRC Click2Houston reported that officers arrived to find two men and a woman fighting, with the men identified as the woman’s current boyfriend and her ex-boyfriend. No one was struck by gunfire, but the scene forced investigators to secure the lot and sort out who was armed, who fled and what was inside the vehicles tied to the group.

The episode fits a pattern that worries people who live and work along the Tidwell corridor. The Baker Institute has found that convenience stores and gas stations are among the most common retail locations for firearm crimes in the Houston area. That makes places built for quick stops especially vulnerable when arguments spill out of vehicles and turn into confrontations in public.

The stretch near US 59 and Tidwell Road has also seen prior fatal gas-station shootings in 2023 and 2025, adding to concerns about a corridor where routine errands can turn into dangerous encounters. For drivers, nearby residents and business owners, Wednesday night’s gunfire was another reminder that a parking lot fight at a busy intersection can quickly become a threat to everyone nearby.