Texas College Shoot-Out Leaves Three Dead

Three people, including a police officer serving an eviction notice and the gunman, have been killed after a shootout near a college campus in Texas.

Thomas Caffall, 35, shot a police officer who turned up to his house in the area just east of Texas A&M University to give him an eviction notice on Monday afternoon.

Police then shot the gunman, who later died.

The officer killed has been named as Brian Bachmann, 41, and the third man identified as bystander Chris Northcliff, who was 43.

Four others were injured in the attack in College Station, a university town 90 miles northwest of Houston, including three law enforcement officers attending the incident and a 55-year-old woman.

Caffall was initially taken into custody, but later died of injuries suffered during an exchange of gunfire with police.

Caffall's sister said that the family was "shocked" by the violence.

"Our hearts and prayers go out to the families and this is just a senseless tragedy," said Courtney Clark, the gunman's sister.

"We are just distraught by the havoc that he has caused."

College Station police said they saw Mr Bachmann wounded on the ground in the front yard when they arrived at the scene and he then got into "an extended shootout with Caffall".

The area's assistant police chief Scott McCollum paid tribute to their lost colleague.

"Brian Bachmann was very close to everyone in law enforcement.

"He was a pillar in this community, and it's sad and tragic that we've lost him today," he said.

Police spokeswoman Rhonda Seaton said that Mr Northcliff was outside the home when he was shot, as was the wounded woman, who has not yet been named but is in a serious condition in hospital after surgery.

The authorities declined to speculate on a motive for the gunfire, which occurred near the campus football stadium, Kyle Field.

Diana Harbourt, 27, who lives near to the scene, said she heard five loud popping sounds from a back room of her home and looked out her front door to see an officer park his vehicle on the street and crouch in front of another vehicle.

"We heard him exchanging some words with the person and then shots being fired.

"And then we heard more sirens and more officers and fire trucks came and they were keeping their distance, kind of slowly moving in. More officers showed up and told us to stay inside."

The shootings prompted Texas A&M to issue an emergency alert warning students and residents to stay away from the area.

Most of the university's 50,000 students were not on the campus because it is the summer holidays, university spokeswoman Sherylon Carroll said.