Man killed in Texas shootout is suspect in murder of Colorado prisons chief

A man who was involved in a shootout in Texas has been identified by authorities as the suspect in Tuesday’s murder of Colorado’s prisons system chief.

Evan Spencer Ebel, 28, was involved in a police shootout in Wise County, Texas on Thursday afternoon after a car chase that reached 100 mph. He had shot Montague County Sheriff's Deputy James Boyd during a traffic stop, then sped from the scene, authorities say, reports NBCDFW. During the chase, he hit a truck and when he got out, he started firing randomly in the direction of police. They returned fire and he was gravely wounded. Ebel died Friday morning.

According to The New York Times, Ebel has been linked to the murder of Tom Clements, the chief executive of Colorado’s prisons system. He was shot when he answered the door bell. The car Ebel was driving during the chase in Texas matched descriptions of the vehicle seen at Clements’ home.

Ebel has a long criminal record and was a parolee from the Denver area. The Denver Post had reported that he was a member of white supremacists gang, notes CBS News. He had been convicted of various crimes starting in 2003.