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The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) said one person died and there were “multiple serious injuries” Friday after a man drove a stolen 18-wheeler into its office in Brenham, which is about 75 miles northwest of Houston.
Clenard Parker, a 42-year-old resident of nearby Chappell Hill, was arrested at the scene, according to DPS Sgt. Justin Ruiz, who said Parker had visited the DPS office the day before and was denied a commercial driver’s license. Local law enforcement was pursuing Parker at the time of the crash, Ruiz said.
“We will prosecute this person to the full extent of the law,” Texas Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, who represents the Brenham area, said during an afternoon news conference. “This will not be tolerated, not in my hometown, and not in our home state.”
Including the person who died, a total of 14 people were injured in the crash, according to DPS, with three of them being flown to hospitals in the region. Three others were taken to hospitals with less-significant injuries, and eight people were treated at the scene.
Kolkhorst wrote earlier Friday in a post on X that no DPS staffers were seriously injured.
We can confirm that the Texas Rangers are investigating this incident. A suspect has been arrested and there is no further threat to the community.
Additional resources are en route to assist.
Please continue to avoid the area. https://t.co/i1ur36ZcaM
— TxDPS – Southeast Texas Region (@TxDPSSoutheast) April 12, 2024
“Our hearts go out to the injured and their families, and we pray especially for those in critical condition,” Rohnnie Shaw, executive director of the Texas State Troopers Association, wrote in a Facebook post by the organization.
After Parker was arrested, the DPS office for the Southeast Texas region wrote in a post on X that there was “no further threat to the community.”
“This is a sad day for DPS and for all the people involved, all the customers we had in our building today,” Ruiz said.