Holly MatkinHouston, TX – The two suspects charged with capital murder in the death of New Orleans Police Detective Everett Briscoe were both gang members out on bond at the time of the deadly attack, according to prosecutors.
Officer Briscoe, 41, was enjoying a meal with friends on the outdoor patio of the Grotto Ristorante while on vacation in Houston on Aug. 21 when two hooded gunmen walked up to the group and demanded they had over their belongings, WVUE reported.
The group complied with their orders, but one of the suspects opened fire anyway, killing Det. Briscoe.
A second victim, Dyrin Riculfy, was shot in the head during the attack and remains in a coma at a hospital in Houston, KHOU reported.
The gunmen fled the scene without stealing any of the victims’ belongings, witness Elroy James told WVUE.
Detective Everett Briscoe pic.twitter.com/TuKvYRxukK
— NOPD (@NOPDNews) August 22, 2021
Billionaire Tilman Fertitta, owner of the Houston Rockets, joined up with Crime Stoppers Huston to help provide a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Det. Briscoe’s killers, KPRC reported.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner confirmed that police honed in on two suspects after receiving a tip from a member of the public.
Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg and Turner held a press conference Aug. 27 to announce the arrests of 19-year-old Frederick Dewayne Jackson and 21-year-old Anthony Rayshard Jenkins, KPRC reported.
Both are known gang members, Ogg confirmed.
A third “person of interest” is still on the loose, she noted.
Jenkins was out on a $40,000 bond for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon at the time of the attack on Det. Briscoe and his friends, KPRC reported.
Jackson, a convicted felon, was out on a staggering five bonds at the time of the fatal shooting, to include a pending charge of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon.
He also cut off his ankle monitor and failed to show up at a court hearing in August, so the judge revoked his bond.
Police said they have located surveillance footage showing Jackson and Jenkins stalking other victims at high-end stores and restaurants in the Galleria area prior to the detective’s murder, KHOU reported.
Ogg said she, Turner, and Houston Police Chief Troy Finner do not believe suspects who have multiple bonds should be released from jail, KPRC reported.
She also blamed felony bond policies for part of the spike in local crime.
Ogg said her office will ask the court to deny bond for the accused killers and noted that prosecutors may pursue the death penalty against them, KHOU reported.
“Death is on the table,” she confirmed.
19 and 21 How and why???
Frederick Jackson and 21-year-old Anthony Jenkins. Both are charged with capital murder for the killing of Detective Everett Briscoe.#Prison #Freelabor #Deathrow #Crimehurtsourcommunity #BlackonBlackCrimeMustStop #TalktoYourKids #Houston #Gangmembers pic.twitter.com/MMNonuqbJT— Apostle Baker (@ApostleCL) August 28, 2021
Det. Briscoe had been in Houston for just two hours prior to the shooting, KHOU reported.
Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club President Elroy James said the group was in town to celebrate their Zulu brotherhood, according to WVUE.
James said he had just left them at the restaurant to run an errand minutes before he received a call about the shooting.
“They shot him in the head,” he heard when he answered the phone, according to KPRC. “You need to come back.”
James said he immediately headed back to the restaurant.
“I saw brothers apply pressure to wounds. I saw brothers encouraging fallen brothers to hold on. I heard brothers calling 911 dialing many on the phone saying you’re not getting here fast enough,” he told WVUE. “We did all we could.”
Det. Briscoe, a 13-year veteran of the New Orleans Police Department, leaves behind his wife and two sons, ages 16 and 10, WFAA reported.
