ROUND ROCK, Texas — The Round Rock Police Department has identified the suspect who died after shooting at authorities in Round Rock on May 7.
RRPD identified the suspect as 31-year-old Henry Tolentino. He was a Round Rock resident who lived on Bent Tree Loop, in the area where the shooting happened.
RRPD Police Chief Allen Banks said the suspect was found dead by officers in a wooded area around Camino Del Verdes Place and Salorn Way where he had retreated and was firing at officers from. However, it is not known at this time if officers firing at the suspect is what led to his death.
The man's sister, Beverly Tolentino, told KVUE's news partners at the Austin American-Statesman that her brother was a Navy veteran and college graduate who had been experiencing hallucinations in the months preceding his death. She also reported that she had spoken with him a few days before the incident, believing that he was doing OK.
"Something must have triggered him," she told the Statesman. "I know it wasn't planned because he had been to the grocery store three hours earlier."
According to her, Henry Tolentino had received care at a Veterans Administration hospital after he reported the hallucinations in July. At that time, he had reportedly been restrained from police and was taken to a hospital for a short time.
Beverly Tolentino said she believes his mental health began deteriorating after the death of their mother, who died in 2019 after a cancer diagnosis. She said he lived at home with their mother to care for her while he attended St. Edward's University and worked at the IRS.
She said that she thought he suffered from post traumatic stress disorder. She reported that he eventually quit his job at the IRS and that the VA gave him medication, adding that she was not sure if he had been taking it at the time of the shooting.
Beverly Tolentino also said that he was studying to go back to school to get a master's degree in finance. She said that he died on their mother's birthday.
"He was not a villain," she told the Statesman. "He served our country."
On Monday, May 9, the RRPD said the following officers discharged their weapons during Saturday’s incident: Sgt. Kasheala May, Sgt. Brian Quick, Det. Andrew Rivera, Ofc. Dillon Rizzo and Ofc. Marcus Vasquez.
Sgt. May has been with the RRPD for 11 years, Sgt. Quick 21 years, Det. Rivera nine years, Ofc. Rizzo four years and Ofc. Vasquez three years. The officers are currently on administrative leave in accordance with department policy. The investigation is ongoing and in collaboration with the Williamson County District Attorney’s Office and the Texas Rangers.
RRPD officers first received a report of a person being shot multiple times in the area of Old Settlers Boulevard and Sam Bass Road around 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 7. They said the shooter was potentially a neighbor of the person shot.
Minutes later, at 12:38 p.m. authorities received a report of a man wearing a black trench coat and carrying an "AK-style rifle" while running across Old Settlers Boulevard. At 12:43 p.m., a fire department battalion chief reported that he saw a man hop a fence at Behren's Ranch and Plantation Drive in camouflaged clothes.
It was around this time, at 1:10 p.m., that RRPD tweeted it was responding to an armed individual in the area and said people should shelter in place. Nearby residents in the area of Old Settlers Boulevard and Bent Tree Drive were also asked to shelter in place. Others were asked to avoid the area. Old Settlers Boulevard was closed to traffic from Plantation Drive to Sam Bass Road.
Officers responded to the area where the battalion chief saw the man and the man engaged officers by firing at them. The man then retreated into the wooded area around Camino Del Verdes Place and Salorn Way while still shooting at officers, Banks said. Officers returned the fire.
Officers saw the man was wearing body armor. Once the department's armored vehicle arrived on the scene, the man started firing at the vehicle and officers fired back.
Officers then reached the suspect, finding him in the dense wood line, Banks said. They used a less-than-lethal round to see if he would respond, but he did not. It was determined at that time that he had died.
The investigation is ongoing at this time. Neither a motive nor a connection between the suspect and victim is known right now.
The victim who was shot at a home in the area sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to the hospital. The person is expected to be OK.
An officer on the scene suffered an unrelated medical issue and was taken to the hospital. That officer is expected to be OK as well, Banks said.
Neighbors told KVUE they heard shots fired and reported a large police presence in the Behrens Ranch and Mira Vista neighborhoods. A helicopter and drones were involved in the search.
Police set up a staging area at Old Town Elementary. Pflugerville PD, Cedar Park PD, Leander PD and Georgetown PD assisted with the operation.
Watch the full press conference below:
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