A single gunshot rang out inside the Uvalde H-E-B on Monday after a father confronted his son, a fellow store employee, in the deli department during what police say was a family and workplace dispute. No one was injured, and the suspect was taken into custody after a store manager and a customer intervened before officers arrived.
The store and its parking lot at 201 East Main Street were evacuated as a precaution once the weapon discharged, according to the Uvalde Police Department, as reported by WOAI News 4 San Antonio. WOAI's report by Christopher Hoffman said preliminary information pointed to a person discharging a weapon inside the store, and that many employees were safely gathered upstairs with management while the building was checked for anyone still inside. Police told the outlet there was no known threat to the community at the time.
Later reporting filled in what sparked the confrontation. According to KSAT, the father returned to the store armed with a handgun to confront his son in the deli department, and a single bullet was fired during the ensuing struggle. The station reported that an H-E-B store manager physically intervened when the suspect pulled out the handgun, and that a customer who witnessed the struggle held the suspect until police arrived.
Police Praise Quick Action by Staff and a Shopper
Uvalde Police Chief Homer E. Delgado publicly commended the manager and the customer, saying their quick actions “undoubtedly helped prevent further violence,” per the same KSAT report. One suspect was taken into custody, with potential criminal charges still pending as officers continued to evaluate the case. Delgado was appointed permanent chief in April 2024 after serving as assistant chief, a promotion that came with a mandate to reform department operations following intense criticism of local law enforcement's response to the 2022 Robb Elementary School shooting.
A Texas Public Radio report in 2022 covered one of the last Uvalde shooting survivors leaving a San Antonio hospital. Monday's evacuation followed reports of gunfire inside the store.
Store Policy Bars Open Carry, Even as Legal Questions Remain
H-E-B maintains a corporate policy across its Texas stores banning open and permitless carry of handguns, limiting firearm possession on store grounds to licensed concealed carry by non-employee customers as state law allows, according to CBS News. Texas law lets private property owners restrict open carry under Penal Code Section 30.07, and entering a posted property with a firearm can be prosecuted as a Class C or Class A misdemeanor depending on whether explicit oral warnings were given, per the Texas Department of Public Safety. Uvalde police have not said whether charges beyond those tied to the altercation itself are being considered.
The Uvalde H-E-B was undergoing a planned $10 million renovation projected to finish in early 2025. The chain holds outsized significance in this community: H-E-B and its founding family pledged $10 million in 2022 toward a new elementary campus to replace Robb Elementary, FOX 7 Austin has reported.
The identity of the suspect and the specific charges he may face have not been released. Monday's incident adds to a string of violent episodes Hoodline has tracked in Uvalde in recent weeks, including an early-morning shooting in the Uvalde Estates neighborhood and a park stabbing that sent one man to a San Antonio hospital. Whether H-E-B or local police will revisit security protocols at the store has not been addressed publicly.
