A Texas sheriff’s deputy was killed and a police officer was shot when a wanted man opened fire from inside his home as they came to arrest him.
Story Highlights
- A Van Zandt County sheriff’s deputy, identified in reports as Deputy Adam Sherifi, was shot and killed while helping Canton police serve felony warrants at a home south of Canton, Texas.
- Sherifi leaves behind a wife and three children, one of them born in September, according to reports.
- A Canton police officer was shot in the arm and taken to a hospital.
- The man named in the warrants, wanted for aggravated assault and aggravated assault on a peace officer, was found dead inside the home.
- The Texas Rangers are leading the investigation, and officials say there is no ongoing threat to the public.
What Happened During the Warrant Service
Van Zandt County deputies went to a home in the 4300 block of State Highway 198, south of Canton, at about 10 p.m. to help Canton police serve the warrants. Canton is a small town about 60 miles east of Dallas. The man they came for was wanted for aggravated assault, a serious attack that usually involves a weapon or badly hurts someone, and for aggravated assault on a peace officer, the Texas legal term for a police officer or deputy.
At about 10:22 p.m., shots were fired from inside the home toward the deputies and officers outside, officials say, and officers fired back. The deputy was fatally wounded and the Canton officer was hit in the arm.
The suspect was later found dead inside the home from a gunshot wound. Officials have not said whether that wound came from officers’ gunfire or was self-inflicted. They have not released his name.
The Deputy Who Was Lost
The deputy killed on the night of Tuesday, October 20, has been identified in reports as Adam Sherifi of the Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office. He leaves behind a wife and three children, including a baby born in September. The sheriff’s office has not released his age or years of service, and the sheriff described the details released so far as preliminary.
The Texas Rangers, the investigative division of the Texas Department of Public Safety, are leading the case, so an agency outside the two local departments handles it. On Wednesday morning, October 21, sheriff’s vehicles were parked outside the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office, the office that examines a body to find the cause of death. The wounded Canton officer’s name and condition have not been released.
Why Warrant Attempts Carry High Risk
Serving a warrant is one of the most dangerous jobs in police work. Officers walk up to a home they have never been inside, to arrest someone who may be armed and may not want to go. A federal report on officers shot in the line of duty in 2025 found that warrant service and disturbance calls together made up 42 percent of shooting incidents.
Local teams set up around a home, announce themselves and try to end things peacefully. A suspect who opens fire from inside takes those choices away. In a matter of seconds, a routine trip to serve papers became the death of a husband and father, and a small East Texas community lost one of its own.
What Officials Say About Public Safety
The Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office called the shooting an isolated incident with no ongoing danger to neighbors. Officers were not looking for anyone else. State Highway 198 was closed between FM 3227 and County Road 2211 during the response and has since reopened.
The Rangers will put together the full timeline of what happened at that house. For the deputy’s family, and for the officers who were standing beside him, the loss is already plain: a man who went to work to keep his county safe did not come home.
Sources:
kltv.com, nbcdfw.com, cbsnews.com, wsbtv.com
