Shooter kills 1 and injures 10 in Texas days after firing at a police
officer, officials say
[June 13, 2026]
By JEFFREY COLLINS and JOHN SEEWER
A man who opened fire in the West Texas city of Midland in an attack
Friday morning that left one person dead and 10 injured had shot at a
police officer just days earlier during a chase, authorities said.
The suspect, 45-year-old Victor Mata Villarreal, already was being
sought by authorities when he began firing at police and bystanders in
Midland on Friday before barricading himself in an abandoned veterinary
clinic, where he was eventually found dead, according to the Texas
Department of Public Safety.
Police have provided limited details about how the shooting unfolded.
Police arrived in the area after receiving reports of an active shooter,
and Mata Villarreal started firing at officers, said Midland Police
Chief Greg Snow. Several officers were pinned down behind their patrol
cars and had to be rescued by an armored vehicle, Snow said, but no
officers were shot.
Police then got everyone out of the area. “We moved to deny more targets
for this active shooter,” Snow said.
A few hours after the shooting began, authorities used robot and drone
footage from inside the building to confirm the shooter was dead,
Midland Mayor Lori Blong. Police did not say how he died.
A spokesperson for the city identified a man killed in the shooting as
Ed Scott, a father and husband who worked in solid waste for Midland. He
also did a lot of work with local and regional softball organizations,
according to the city.
Friends mourning his death described him in social media posts as a
softball umpire and volleyball official who was known for his kindness
and jokes.
Mata Villarreal, of nearby Odessa, was wanted for attempted capital
murder of a peace officer after firing multiple times at a Midland
police officer on Wednesday, the state’s public safety agency said.
The officer, who wasn't injured, fired back after initially trying to
pull over Mata Villarreal, who drove away, investigators said. His
vehicle was found empty a short distance away, they said. Police have
not said why the officer tried to stop Mata Villarreal.
Friday’s standoff happened about a half-mile (1 kilometer) from where
the shots were fired at the police officer Wednesday.
Police have not said why Mata Villarreal began shooting on Friday or
provided any details about the victims, including who they were, how
they were shot or the conditions of those still hospitalized.
Midland Memorial Hospital said four people who were brought there
underwent surgery and that five had been treated and released.
Calls to numbers listed for some relatives of Mata Villarreal in Texas
went unanswered Friday or appeared to be lines that had been
disconnected.
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This undated drivers license photo provided by the U.S. Marshall's
Service in June 2026 shows Victor Mata Villarreal. (U.S. Marshall's
Service via AP)
Mata Villarreal had several previous encounters with law
enforcement, including some arrests, records show.
He was convicted on a 2009 charge of unlawfully carrying a firearm
in San Angelo, according to Texas criminal history records.
He was charged in 2003 and 2004 for unlawfully carrying a weapon and
unlawful possession of a prohibited weapon, but both cases appear to
have been dismissed as part of a plea. He also pleaded no contest to
a domestic violence charge in 2008 that was later dismissed.
As police responded to Friday's shooting, dozens of squad cars and
law enforcement vehicles descended along what’s normally a busy
roadway lined with hotels and auto businesses a few miles west of
Midland’s downtown.
Andrea Mendias said she heard what sounded like a small explosion at
the closed veterinary clinic next to the auto body shop where she
works and saw a number of heavily armed police officers rush into
the parking lot. Some appeared to go inside the building.
Mendias said she earlier heard what sounded like at least 40
gunshots.
Video from Mendias showed officers pouring out of the back of an
armored police vehicle and police deploying robots into the area.
The city with about 140,000 residents sits in the heart of the
state’s oil and gas region and was near the site of a deadly
shooting rampage in 2019.
In that shooting, a gunman who had been fired from his oil services
job killed seven people and wounded two dozen others while firing at
random as he drove around the Odessa and Midland areas. The two
cities are more than 300 miles (482 kilometers) west of Dallas.
___
Associated Press reporters Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia and Valerie
Gonzalez in McAllen, Texas, contributed.
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