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At least three people were shot in what Houston police are calling a human smuggling operation. Officers received a 911 call about a shooting and found two men at an IHOP restaurant, who said they were being detained by a group of men at a nearby Motel 6.
One of the victims told officers he had been shot earlier in the morning at an unknown location. After the shooting, the men said they were transported to a hotel about two hours away.
They managed to escape the hotel room, ran to the IHOP, and called 911. The two men were taken to the hospital. About two hours later, two other men showed up at the hospital with gunshot wounds and said they were also victims of the human smuggling operation.
Police said there might be a fourth victim, but they have not been able to locate them.
All three gunshot victims are in stable condition and are expected to recover.
When officers went to investigate the hotel room, they spotted two cars trying to flee the scene. Both vehicles were pulled over, and nine people were detained. Officials said they are still working to determine which men were suspects and victims.
"We'll be interviewing all the parties detained with our HPD detectives, with the Homeland Security agents to try and, you know, figure everything out, determine who's suspects, who are victims, and get them the appropriate resources," Houston Police Commander Jonathan Halliday said during a press conference.