A man was caught breaking into a truck and sped off. His passenger wound up dead

One man is dead following a shooting in a parking garage north of downtown Sunday night that police say was prompted by a vehicle break-in.

Homicide Sgt. Joe Loughman said the shooting occurred shortly after 8 p.m. on the top floor of the parking garage of the Lincoln Park at Trinity Bluff apartments in the 500 block of Samuels Avenue.

A man and his girlfriend were headed to his pickup to go get ice cream when they noticed a man inside the truck, prompting the truck owner to grab his gun, Loughman said.

“He opened up the driver-side door, told him ‘Don’t move. I’m going to call the police,’” Loughman said.

The suspected burglar, however, bailed out the passenger side of the truck and opened up the driver-side door to a car parked next to the truck.

“The owner feared that he was going to possibly pick up a weapon so he fired a couple shots,” Loughman said. “He did see there was a passenger in the car.”

The suspected burglar pulled out of the parking space before abruptly stopping again, Loughman said, putting the truck owner again in fear for his life. The truck owner fired more shots at the car, which then sped away.

About 20 minutes later, a car pulled into Huguley Hospital, its driver reporting that his passenger had been shot.

The passenger was pronounced dead at the hospital. He had not been identified as of Monday afternoon but police say he is believed to be a 55-year-old man.

Loughman said the driver, identified as 29-year-old Casey Smith, admitted to police breaking into a truck. He was arrested at the hospital on an outstanding theft warrant out of Dallas County and treated for some cuts caused by flying glass.

Homicide detectives will consult with the Tarrant County district attorney’s office to determine what charges Smith will face in connection with the break-in that led to the shooting, Loughman said.

The truck’s owner was not arrested. Investigators will also consult with the DA’s office to determine if he faces any charges in connection with the incident, Loughman said.

Second fatal shooting

Hours after the parking garage shooting, homicide investigators were called to a second, unrelated fatal shooting, this one at an apartment complex in east Fort Worth.

Aaron Ray, 28, was fatally shot inside his Heather Village apartment in the 6000 block of Starling Drive. He was pronounced dead on the scene at 1:15 a.m. from a gunshot wound to the head.

Loughman said Ray’s girlfriend and their infant child were inside the apartment when the shooting took place but were not injured.

The investigation is continuing, Loughman said.

This story was originally published November 13, 2017 at 5:13 PM with the headline "A man was caught breaking into a truck and sped off. His passenger wound up dead."