Brandon Poulos, the man suspected of shooting seven San Antonio police officers Wednesday, was out on bond for violent offenses and may have targeted deputies in Comal County the night before, according to media reports.
Seven SAPD officers suffered non-life-threatening injuries after responding to a call at around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday regarding a suicide in progress at a Stone Oak apartment complex, according to a police report obtained by the Current.
The incident ended hours later when SAPD personnel, assisted by SAWT officers, entered the apartment and discovered the dead body of Poulos, 46. It remains unclear whether the suspect — a 10-year Navy veteran — was slain by officers or took his own life.
The night before the Stone Oak shooting, Poulos made an eerily similar phone call to the Comal County Sheriff’s Office, saying her was suicidal, KENS5 reports.
Throughout 30 calls that began 11:25 a.m. Tuesday, Poulos told Comal County dispatchers he would “shoot police if they approach me,” the TV station reports. Even so, the sheriff’s department didn’t dispatch personnel but instead launched a drone to survey the scene.
The residence from which the call was placed seemed calm, according to documents obtained by KENS5.
Poulos was out on $35,000 bond at the time of the 911 phone calls in Comal County and during the shooting in Stone Oak. He’d been arrested on Saturday, Jan. 18, for assaulting an elderly couple in Bexar County, court records show.
According to a preliminary police report on the Saturday incident obtained by KSAT, Poulos pushed an 81-year-old woman to the ground and struck an 83-year-old man in the face. When a 44-year-old woman tried to intervene, Poulos reportedly pushed her down and dragged her by her hair.
Poulos was later arrested on two counts of injury to an elderly person, family assault and DWI.
Even so, a Bexar County judge released Poulos on bond.
In response to Poulos being allowed out on bond, the Combined Law Enforcement Association of America is calling on Texas lawmakers to hold lenient judges accountable.
“The pattern of judges granting low or no bonds on violent offenders across our large urban counties is unprecedented and must end,” CLEAT Executive Director Robert Leonard said in a statement.
However, under current law, Texas judges only deny bail in capital murder cases where the death penalty is on the table. What’s more, magistrate judges argue that they’re forced to make guesses when setting bail when if don’t have adequate information on a suspect’s likelihood to commit future violent acts.
Six of the seven officers allegedly shot by Poulos had been discharged from the hospital as of noon Thursday. The officers injured include:
- Officer Jesus Hilario-Marquez, 5 years of service
- Officer Kyle Rainey, 5 years of service
- Officer Dean Rosetta, 4 years of service
- Officer Jacob Barcena, 7 years of service
- Officer Ryan O’Hara, 3 years of service
- Officer William Perez, 5 years of service
- Officer Jorge Ramos, 4 years of service
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This article appears in Jan 22 – Feb 4, 2025.
