An inmate who escaped while being taken to a dentist office somehow managed to get out of handcuffs and shackles before using a toothbrush made into a shank to attack a jailer and then kill an innocent man, authorities said.
An inmate who escaped while being taken to a dentist office somehow managed to get out of handcuffs and shackles before using a toothbrush made into a shank to attack a jailer and then kill an innocent man, authorities said.
Brownsville Police Chief Orlando Rodriguez and Cameron County Sheriff Omar Lucio detailed the events of Thursday’s fatal carjacking and shooting that spanned from Brownsville to San Benito.
They say county detention officer Antonio Tella was taking inmate Miguel Diaz Garcia, 38, to a dental appointment on the 3700 block of Boca Chica Boulevard.
Rodriguez said when Tella opened the door to remove Garcia he rushed and attacked the detention officer. He said Garcia slashed the jailer’s neck, took his service revolver and then swam across a nearby resaca and entered a home on the 300 block of Fruitdale Road where he demanded keys to a getaway car.
The chief said Garcia continued to demand a set of keys and someone in the home gave him keys to their personal car. Garcia shot and killed a man visiting the residence.
Garcia fled the home and eventually got into a high speed chase with Brownsville police, sheriff’s deputies, county constables and Texas Department of Public Safety troopers that ended at the San Benito industrial park.
“It ended with a confrontation when officers from various agencies were trying to apprehend the suspect. The suspect opened fire on the officers and there was an exchange of gunfire, which eventually lead to the death of the suspect,” said the chief.
