KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana |Gunman killed officer wounded in Texas Wal-Mart shootout

Gunman killed officer wounded in Texas Wal-Mart shootout

COMMERCE, TX(AP/CBS 11 NEWS) –Police in the Northeast Texas town of Commerce say a suspected gunman has been killed and an off-duty officer injured in a shootout outside the local Walmart store.

Commerce Police spokeswoman Marty Cunningham says the incident Sunday began when police received a call of shots being fired from a red Ford Mustang at an intersection near I-30 in the nearby town of Greenville.

The suspect then drove onto the highway, driving north to Commerece. 

Commerce police say the suspect exchanged gunfire with Commerce police just outside the city limits before driving to the Walmart.

Cunningham says the suspect entered the store carrying "a long gun and a pistol." 

An off-duty Delta County Sheriff's deputy who was shopping in the story with his wife and baby followed the suspect out of the store, where the suspect was killed. 

In a press conference Sunday afternoon Cunningham said the deputy was able to stop the gunman because he was in the right place at the right time.  "If he had not been there and tried to detain the suspect, this could have been a lot worse.  We could have had a lot of people hurt."

The deputy, identified as Paul Robertson, was taken by air ambulance to East Texas Medical Center in Tyler.  A Sunday night update said Robertson was stable and resting.  Delta County Sheriff Gerald Teague says Robertson will more than likely be released from the hospital Monday.

Sunday night Robertson's friend Jeremy Anderson told CBS 11 the deputy was a hero.  "It is pretty courageous for him to step in and do what he did and save a bunch of people's lives."

Two people inside the store at the time of the shooting were also taken to a nearby hospital, but only for complaints of chest pains following the shooting. 

Police are still trying to determine a motive in the case. 

Commerce is 65 miles Northeast of Dallas off I-30.