The Houston Police Department says it still hasn’t found the motive for Monday’s shooting in the West University area, located in southwest Houston, but they continue to collect evidence and the investigation remains active.
During a press conference held after the weekly meeting of the Houston City Council, HPD Homicide Division Cpt. Dwayne Ready explained investigators are still interviewing witnesses and noted that the autopsy performed on Nathan Desai shows he was shot about six times by police officers.
Ready also detailed that, in addition to the two firearms Desai had at the scene of the shooting, he had more at home.
“The ones found in the residence included another .45 caliber semiautomatic handgun, as well as a 9 mm handgun and a 30-30 rifle, along with additional ammunition,” Ready said.
Investigators also found body armor and a gas mask at Desai’s condo in the West University area.
Ready added it is still unclear why Desai had Nazi emblems on the military clothing he was wearing.
Mayor Sylvester Turner emphasized Houston was very fortunate because no victims lost their lives and praised the quick reaction by the Houston Police Department and other first responders.
“They did a very exemplary job of responding, doing precisely what they’ve been trained to do and did it in a very professional manner and responded fairly quickly to the incident and contained it,” Turner commented at the press conference.
Police are also investigating Desai’s name change a few years after the 9/11 attacks, from Niren to Nathan.