Texas cops arrest 2 suspects accused of fatally shooting off-duty New Orleans police officer in botched robbery

Two Texas men in custody could face a possible sentence of up to death or life without parole if convicted of the recent shooting death of an off-duty police officer from out of state, authorities announced.

Frederick Jackson, 19, and 21-year-old Anthony Jenkins were charged with capital murder and attempted capital murder after allegedly fatally shooting New Orleans Police Department cop Everett Briscoe, 41, and wounding his friend, D.J. Riculfy, in a robbery gone bad at a Houston restaurant on Aug. 21. A third man connected to the shooting is still at large, police said.

Authorities said the victims and their friends were dining on the patio at Grotto when the murder suspects allegedly held them up at gunpoint and then opened fire. Broscoe died at the scene and Riculfy was rushed to an area hospital, where he remains in critical condition.

Jackson and Jenkins were both out on bond for separate crimes at the time of the deadly attack, according to Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg. Jackson allegedly robbed a person of assets worth up to a reported $40,000 in the same area as where Briscoe and Riculfy were shot. Jenkins was free on bond for an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charge, police said.

The two men are allegedly connected to a string of crimes in which victims were targeted and robbed of jewelry, according to police.

Law enforcement officials believe the pair and the third suspect’s alleged attack on Briscoe and Riculfy in an area popular with tourists may have been a failed attempt to raise cash to bond out another person currently incarcerated.

“We are sickened by this bold attack,” Ogg said.

Houston Police Chief Troy Finner declined to comment on what led investigators to the suspects and said news of the arrest “won’t undo what was done but hopefully it can offer some relief” to the victims’ colleagues, friends and family in Louisiana.

Officials had offered a reward of $100,000 for information leading to an arrest in the case.