Police chief Michael Pimentel in small Texas town killed

The police chief of a small Texas town Michael Pimentel was gunned down while conducting a traffic stop, Bexar Sheriff Susan Pamerleau said.

Pamerleau said the suspect, identified as Joshua Lopez, 24, is in custody. He is to face a charge of capital murder of a police officer. Pamerleau said the Bexar County Sheriff's Office has taken over the investigation of the incident.

Details surrounding the traffic stop were not disclosed, but there was an active graffiti warrant out for Lopez, Pamerleau added.

Pimentel was shot twice, once in the shoulder and once in abdomen, said Sgt. Jason Burchett, who's now the Elmendorf's acting police chief. He added that the suspect suffered from mental illness.

Joshua Lopez

Alderman Polo Maldonado and Alderwoman Linda Pena Ortiz confirmed the chief, who was flown to University Hospital, had died from his injuries.

"I know the chief has passed away, and our city attoey and our city administrator will be preparing a statement for the media," Ortiz said, adding that she didn't want to elaborate. "It's like a nightmare for all us."

Sean Salter, CEO of Airlife, said his dispatch office received a request for transport from the Harmony Volunteer Fire Department and Acadian Ambulance Service at 11:39 a.m. and arrived at the scene 20 minutes later.

"He (Pimentel) had a gunshot wound and was severely injured," Salter said.

The San Antonio Police Department expressed condolences to the family of the fallen officer in a Facebook post hours after the shooting. The post, however, did not identify the chief.

Pimentel is the fifth law enforcement officer to die in Texas this year, said Steve McCraw, head of the Texas Department of Public Safety. Three of the five were killed by gunfire.

Thirteen officers died in the line of duty last year.

"Every day police officers throughout the state risk their lives to protect their communities, and tragically sometimes they make the ultimate sacrifice," McCraw said. "On behalf of the Department of Public Safety, our thoughts and prayers go out ot the family of the chief."

National statistics show an uptick in the number of officers killed this year, he said, with Pimentel and 72 others dying on duty through this time in 2013. That is up 24 percent from last year.

Check back for more on this developing story.