A Dallas police officer died by apparent suicide a day after he and three other officers fatally shot a homicide suspect as they tried to arrest him this week, according to a department email obtained by The Dallas Morning News.
Dallas police released 17 seconds of surveillance footage Wednesday that did not show any of the officers or include the sounds of gunfire. The officers were part of a task force and were not wearing body cameras during Monday’s operation, police officials said.
The officer who died, Matthew Bacon, was assigned to the U.S. North Texas Fugitive Task Force, which is made up of U.S. Marshals and officers from Dallas and Mesquite. According to internal memos sent by the chief to all officers and obtained by The News, police officials learned of his death around 6 p.m. Tuesday.
Bacon was one of four officers on the task force who opened fire around 10:15 a.m. Monday while trying to apprehend Corey Wayne Thomas in the 3700 block of South Tyler Street, near Marvin D. Love Freeway, police said. The officers fatally shot Thomas, who was suspected in the July 24 killing of 45-year-old Jason Salazar inside a vehicle in the 1500 block of Mentor Avenue, Dallas police said.
Police allege Thomas pointed a gun at them before they opened fire. The footage released by Dallas police does not show the encounter. Dallas police Deputy Chief Terrence Rhodes said in a prerecorded video that the officers didn’t have on body-worn cameras because of “a federal memorandum of understanding.” He said a change to the agreement is under review. He did not provide any additional details.
Rhodes said task force officers found Thomas in a pickup and tried to block his escape with their vehicles. Thomas, in the driver’s seat, tried to leave through the truck’s passenger side which was blocked, Rhodes said.
Thomas then pulled out a firearm and pointed it “in the direction of the arresting officers,” Rhodes said. The four officers then fired at him, hitting him. He was taken to a hospital, where he died shortly after.
The 17 seconds of blurry surveillance footage released by police Wednesday shows a stairwell and the side of a blue apartment building, which has boarded-up windows. A narrow view of the parking lot shows a parked car.
“Let me see your f—ing hands!” someone yells in the distance, off camera.
A car skidding briefly sounds, followed by more yells.
“Show me your f—ing hands!”
“Let me see your hands!”
Someone who appears to be a resident walks by, and looks back in the direction the voices are coming from. The person slows before the video cuts out.
No officers were injured during Monday’s shooting. The shooting was the seventh involving a Dallas police officer this year.
Rhodes said Thomas was wanted for a warrant from Garland for a deadly conduct charge, and the truck he was in was reported stolen. He said a gun was recovered inside the truck. Details about the deadly conduct warrant weren’t immediately available Wednesday evening.
Rhodes identified Bacon and Officer Edgar Morales as the two Dallas police officers who shot Thomas. He said a U.S. Marshal and a Mesquite police officer also shot Thomas, but did not release their names. Mesquite police on Monday directed all inquiries about the shooting to Dallas police, which is investigating the shooting.
The U.S. Marshals released minimal information Monday identifying Thomas.
Bacon had been with Dallas police for 18 years. The department held sessions for officers Wednesday to discuss wellness after the chief informed the department about the officer’s death. Dallas police last year launched a new unit that focuses on improving officers’ mental wellness.
“This is a heartbreaking loss for our DPD family,” Dallas police Chief Eddie García said in one of the memos to officers this week. “As your Chief, I’m asking you to pause for Officer Bacon and his family, and also to check in with yourself.”
“Never hesitate to reach out,” he added. “We are in this together.”
