Sergeant Sean Sebastian Rios

Sean Sebastian Rios

Sergeant Sean Rios was shot and killed in the 7700 block of North Freeway at about 1:30 pm while en route to start his shift at George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

He encountered two vehicles and an armed man on the roadway and became engaged in a shootout with the subject. Sergeant Rios was fatally wounded in the shootout. The subjects in both vehicles fled the scene. The man suspected of shooting Sergeant Rios was arrested the following day. The second subject was arrested the next day.

The subject accused of firing the fatal shot was found not guilty in 2022. He remains in jail for drug and aggravated assault charges from two previous and unrelated shootings.

Sergeant Rios was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and had served with the Houston Police Department for 25 years, assigned to the Airport Division. He is survived by four children, parents, a brother, and two cousins who work also serve with the Houston Police Department.