Two men in custody after officer shot, woman carjacked in Texas

Texas police arrested the man they believe shot an officer before murdering a woman and stealing her pickup truck while evading authorities.

Around 4 a.m. April 14, Burleson Police Officer Joshua Lott pulled over an SUV with Jerry Don Elders, Jeremy Wayne Brewer and an unnamed woman inside. They were stopped for an equipment malfunction. 

Fort Worth’s KXAS-TV reported that as Lott approached the vehicle, Elders allegedly shot him in the chest, shoulder and neck. 

After the three abandoned the SUV, Robin Waddell was shot during a carjacking and the trio took off in her Toyota Tacoma, Focus Daily News reported. 

Shortly before 9 a.m., Waddell managed to get to the police department in Joshua, Texas. She was rushed to the hospital, where she died from her gunshot wounds.

Later the same day, police in Gainesville found the stolen truck and officers got into a chase with the suspects near the Oklahoma border. 

Elders and a second person eventually abandoned the vehicle and ran into a wooded area. The second suspect escaped, but officers apprehended Elders and arrested him on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon against a police officer and possession of a controlled substance.

“He was fleeing in her vehicle,” Burleson Police Chief Billy Cordell said. “We are extremely relieved he is in custody.”

According to KXAS-TV, the second suspect authorities believe was in the car with Elders has been identified as Jeremy Wayne Brewer.

Brewer was arrested on warrants for manufacturing and delivery of a controlled substance, assault causing bodily injury and theft of property, but it’s unclear if the charges stem from the April 14 chain of events, the station reported. 

The third person in the car when the officer was shot was released from custody and no charges have been filed against her.

Police have not yet made any charges related to Waddell’s killing.

Lott, the officer shot, is expected to survive.

“It’s an amazing story,” Cordell told the station. “I visited with him at the hospital, he is alert, he’s in stable condition and speaking. We’re just very thankful. It could have been a very different outcome.”