Former sheriff’s detective arrested in Austin shooting that left 3 dead
AUSTIN, Texas — Authorities say they arrested a former sheriff’s office detective suspected of killing three people in a shooting in Austin.
Stephen Broderick, 41, was arrested just after 7 a.m. CT, according to Manor, Texas, Police Chief Ryan Phipps.
“He was walking down the side of 12300 Old Kimbro Road, which is not far off from US 290. Two callers called in a suspicious person meeting the description of Mr. Broderick. Our officers went out there and conducted a high risk stop on him,” Phipps told CNN.
“He complied fully with the officers and was taken into custody and they did locate a pistol on his waistband.”
Officers with the Manor Police Department responded along with the Travis County Sheriff’s Office. Broderick was transported by the sheriff’s office to the Travis County Jail facility, Phipps said.
Motive for shooting not known yet
Broderick’s arrest came after Austin police, fire and EMS responded to the city’s Great Hills Trail and Rain Creek Parkway area around 11:42 a.m. Sunday, where they found three people suffering gunshot wounds, according to officials.
The victims were pronounced dead at the scene, according to tweets from Austin-Travis County EMS. The shooting appears to be “a domestic situation that is isolated,” Austin police said in a tweet.
The shooting was targeted and the three victims — two women and one man — knew Broderick, according to Austin Police Interim Chief Joseph Chacon. A child was involved but has been located and is safe, he added.
The motive in the shooting is currently unknown.
“Obviously this is a tragedy. We have people who have lost their lives out here,” Chacon said during a Sunday news briefing.
Suspect is former Travis County Sheriff’s Office detective
Broderick is a former Travis County Sheriff’s Office detective who was charged with sexual assault of a child, Travis County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Kristen Dark told CNN.
Dark said Broderick resigned from the department last year after he was arrested and charged in the child sexual assault case. He was arrested June 6, 2020 and released on bond the same month.
CNN has reached out to the Travis County prosecutor for more information and is working to obtain the affidavit in the case.
