Two brothers, ages 8 and 6, drove to safety in Houston on Friday night
after their father was shot and killed while driving on a Texas highway.
The brothers told local police that their father was driving around 11 p.m. when they
heard a loud noise and thought a rock had struck the vehicle
, local Houston television station KPRC reported.
Houston police are currently searching for a vehicle with "a white passenger" as a suspect.
Capture via NBC News
When the children saw their father collapse into the seat, they took control of the steering wheel of the
Toyota Sequoia
and drove it off the freeway for about a mile down the Holland Avenue road
near a shopping mall parking lot.
There they asked for help from a woman leaving a restaurant, who called 911.
Police said
the boys' 29-year-old father was pronounced dead at the scene from
a single gunshot wound to the head.
None of the children were injured in the incident.
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Local television channel KTRK reported that police celebrated the minors' speed, and said their actions prevented a major tragedy on the busy highway.
So far
there is no clear explanation about what happened.
"We don't know if this is
a case of road rage
," Lt. R. Willkens of the Houston Police Department told KTRK.
"So prayers for his family. The children are safe right now."
[They reveal the images of a police shooting on a highway in Houston]
The Houston police are looking for a "vehicle with a white passenger," according to CNN, and will review the recordings of the freeway cameras to see if the incident was recorded.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner announced
a $ 10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of those involved
in the shooting.
