Houston pays homage to slain Sikh police officer in same stadium which hosted ‘Howdy Modi’ event

A man with an active parole violation has been arrested and charged with capital murder for the fatal shooting of a pioneering Houston sheriff’s deputy during a routine traffic stop on Friday, authorities say.

Officer Sandeep Dhaliwal of the Harris County Sheriff's Office had initiated a traffic stop and was apparently walking back to his patrol car when the suspect “caught him by surprise”, ran up, and shot him in the back of the head “in a very cold blooded manner”, Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said at a press conference.

He was rushed to the hospital in critical condition and died a few hours later.

Dhaliwal was the first member of the Sikh community to join Harris County's sheriff's office, and was a "pioneer" in the department, Gonzalez told reporters. He said the fallen deputy had recently returned from a volunteer mission to Puerto Rico.

Meanwhile, a memorial for the officer was held in the same stadium where the ‘Howdy Modi’ event was held on September 22. The stadium was packed to capacity.