Authorities cordon off a part of the sidewalk in the 5100 block of E. 42nd Street in Odessa, Texas, Saturday, Aug. 31, 2019.
Mark Rogers | Odessa American via AP
The death toll has risen in a weekend shooting spree in the West Texas cities of Odessa and Midland.
At least 7 people have died after a gunman hijacked a mail truck Saturday and began shooting randomly at people. The gunman, a white male in his mid-30s, was later shot and killed by police outside a movie theater in Odessa.
The rampage began when a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper stopped a gold Honda at 3:17 p.m. CT Saturday. The occupant of the Honda shot the trooper and fled west toward Odessa on Interstate 20, the highway that connects Odessa and Midland. The two cities are just 20 miles apart.
The gunman shot an individual on the interstate and then drove to 42nd St. in Odessa, shooting multiple people there. At some point during the rampage, the gunman hijacked a mail truck.
The gunman was later shot and killed by police at Cinergy, a local movie theater. His motive is not known at this time.
The shootings in West Texas come just a few weeks after a mass shooting at a Walmart in El Paso left 22 people dead.
