Suspect charged with murder in the fatal shooting of a deputy in Houston

HOUSTON (AP) — A suspect has been charged with murder in the fatal shooting of a Texas deputy constable who had stopped at a Houston intersection as he drove to work, authorities said Thursday.

The announcement of the murder charge came on the same day as the deputy, Maher Husseini, was remembered at his funeral as a Palestinian American who cared deeply for his family, his Islamic faith and his community.

“He was a community servant who strove to make the world a better and safer place. Safety, security and community well-being were manifested in his community service,” Abdurahman Hejazi, the religious scholar for Masjid Al-Salam Mosque in suburban Houston, said during Husseini’s funeral service.

Athir Murady has been charged with one count of murder in the killing of Husseini on Tuesday, said Joe Stinebaker, a Harris County District Attorney’s Office spokesperson.

Authorities say Murady got out of his vehicle, walked up to Husseini’s SUV and fired multiple times. The deputy was pronounced dead at a Houston hospital.

Police are still investigating a motive for the shooting.

According to authorities, Husseini was not in uniform when he was shot and had been driving his personal vehicle. Husseini had worked as a Harris County constable since 2021.

Murady, 40, was being held on Thursday at the county jail in neighboring Galveston County, after he led authorities on a chase that ended in the waters of the Texas Gulf Coast, about 60 miles (100 kilometers) from west Houston where the shooting happened.

Authorities said Sgt. Nick Yeley, a Galveston deputy city marshal, spotted Murady’s vehicle in Galveston hours after the shooting.

“I think it was just fate that I happened to be in the right place at the right time, and I was utilizing the skills that I’ve learned over my career in law enforcement,” Yeley said, according to a Galveston Police Department news release.

Murady then led authorities on a short chase before driving his car into Galveston Bay. He got out of his vehicle and tried to swim from officers, who pulled him aboard a police boat.

Murady is being held without bond in Galveston County on a charge of evading arrest. He was expected to be returned to Houston but authorities could not immediately say when that would happen.

Court and jail records did not list an attorney who could speak on Murady's behalf.

Harris County prosecutors have filed a motion asking a judge to set Murady’s bond at $5 million.

“Mahir was an American by choice and was a proud Palestinian American," Hejazi said during Husseini’s funeral service, which was attended by officers from various law enforcement agencies and several local officials. “He loved the freedoms we enjoy here in America and wished for these freedoms to be all around the world.”

___

Follow Juan A. Lozano: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70