Child injured after gunshot fired at southwest Houston tire shop

HOUSTON (FOX 26) — An employee at a southwest Houston tire shop has been charged with aggravated assault and felon in possession of a firearm after a gunshot was fired toward a vehicle and left a young boy injured.

Following an argument between the 24 Hour Tire Shop employee and a customer, the customer tells police he jumped into his car and drove away when his son said he heard a gunshot. The boy then yelled out that his arm was hurt. The boy's father saw the child was bleeding and took him to Texas Children's Hospital. The child is being treated for a minor wound that doctors believe may have been as a result of shrapnel from the bullet or broken glass.

Houston Police Department investigators say there are conflicting stories about how the shooting happened.

The employee who was taken into police custody told officers that the boy's father tried to run him over with the car and that he fired the weapon in self-defense.

The owner of the tire shop on the South 610 Loop West frontage road near Holt Street tells FOX 26 News that his employee was dragged by the customer's car and that the employee fired the gun in fear for his life not realizing the boy was in the vehicle.