Houston police said the pursuit involved a stolen vehicle and ended near the Westpark Tollway.
HOUSTON, TX — A police chase involving a stolen vehicle ended early Wednesday on Highway 6 near the Westpark Tollway, leaving one person dead, two people detained and investigators sorting through a crash scene that stretched from an overpass to a feeder road.
The crash drew a large law enforcement response in west Houston and shut down part of southbound Highway 6 during the morning commute. Houston police said the pursuit began after a vehicle reported as stolen did not stop for officers. The Harris County Sheriff’s Office took the lead on the crash investigation because an HPD patrol vehicle was involved.
The first call tied to the incident came in at about 3:29 a.m., authorities said. Police said officers tried to stop the stolen vehicle before the driver fled. The chase moved along Highway 6 and ended near Westpark, where the vehicle crashed on the southbound overpass above the toll road. Houston Police Department Lt. Willkens said officers were working the scene at Highway 6 and Westpark after the chase ended. He said one person was pronounced dead at the scene and two people were detained.
Police had not released the name, age or gender of the person who died by Wednesday afternoon. Preliminary information from investigators said the person who died was a suspect who got out of the crashed vehicle and fled on foot. Authorities said the person reached the Highway 6 service road below and was hit by oncoming traffic. Officials said two other people connected to the chase were detained at the scene. Police had not said whether they would face charges, and the exact role of each person in the vehicle remained unclear.
Images from the scene showed a damaged sedan and a Houston police cruiser in the roadway, with debris scattered across the highway. ABC13 cameras showed what appeared to be a damaged Toyota sedan near an HPD patrol vehicle. The crash appeared to happen on the overpass that crosses the Westpark Toll Road. The deceased person was found on the feeder road below, according to police. Officials did not immediately say whether any officer was hurt or whether the driver who struck the fleeing suspect stayed at the scene.
The crash happened near the Mission Bend area, a busy stretch of west Houston where Highway 6 carries commuter traffic past neighborhoods, shopping centers and tollway connections. The morning crash came on a day when Houston-area roads were already dealing with other serious wrecks, including a separate fatal crash involving an 18-wheeler near Interstate 10 and Highway 6. Investigators did not link the two crashes. The Highway 6 pursuit scene caused a separate closure while deputies and police examined the vehicles, marked debris and worked along the overpass and service road.
Shortly after 8 a.m., Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said southbound Highway 6 was closed between Alief Clodine Road and Bellaire Boulevard. Traffic was diverted onto those roads while the investigation continued. The Harris County Sheriff’s Office said it was investigating the crash, while Houston police handled information about the original pursuit. Officials had not released a full timeline of the chase, the speed of the vehicles, the starting point of the traffic stop or the reason the vehicle was listed as stolen.
Houston police said the investigation remained active Wednesday, with more details expected after officers and deputies reviewed evidence from the scene. Investigators were expected to examine patrol vehicle video, roadway cameras, witness statements and physical evidence from the overpass and feeder road. No charges had been announced by Wednesday afternoon. Authorities also had not released the name of the person who died, pending formal identification and notification of relatives.
The scene left a damaged patrol vehicle, a crashed sedan and a closed highway at the center of a morning investigation in west Houston. Police said two people remained detained as investigators worked to determine how the pursuit began, how the crash unfolded and what charges may follow.
Author note: Last updated July 1, 2026.