Tarrant County Deputy Was Found Dead In Fort Worth
Tarrant County TX June 16 2019
A Tarrant County sheriff’s deputy has died after being shot in downtown Fort Worth late Friday.
Sheriff Bill Waybourn said just before midnight that Sgt. Keith Shepherd, who worked in the department’s detention unit, had died at a hospital.
Authorities were called around 9:30 p.m. to the 100 block of North Burnett Street where Shepherd was found in his personal vehicle with “significant head injuries,” Fort Worth police Sgt. Chris Daniels said.
Shepherd was rushed to Texas Health Harris Methodist Fort Worth, where he died a short time later.
Waybourn said Shepherd had been taking a dinner break and was expected to return around 7 or 7:30 p.m., but never did.
He was found in a parking lot near the Sheriff’s Department offices and the Tarrant County jail. The parking lot has security cameras, Waybourn said.
Fort Worth police are leading the investigation, the sheriff said. The Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives also was on the scene.
Though the investigation was in its early stages and authorities did not have a suspect in the shooting, Waybourn said, “We’re confident it will unravel soon.”
Waybourn said he did not believe the public was in danger.
Law enforcement officers blocked off several streets, and police with rifles could be seen searching a nearby parking garage not long after the shooting was reported.
Shepherd, a 19-year-veteran of the force, had “a great reputation” in the department and was a strong leader, Waybourn said. He was also a great husband and father, the sheriff said.
