19-year-old killed in road rage shooting driving to pick up girlfriend, TX reports say

A 19-year-old “finally happy” as he was set to start a new job was killed in a suspected road rage shooting, according to Texas authorities and news reports.

Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said Cody Johnson was found shot in his vehicle on the Katy Freeway on Friday, Sept. 27. He was flown to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the sheriff said.

Authorities do not know who shot Johnson, but the sheriff said it is believed to be a case of road rage.

“We need answers. He was one of the lights of the world that you don’t see often,” his father, Mike Johnson, told KPRC. “The world lost an incredible, incredible kid.”

The sheriff said Cody Johnson was driving a black Camaro with gold rims.

The vehicle, his father said, was unmistakable.

“It was a muscle car, a true muscle car and it was loud, and it was a teenage boy’s dream car,” Mike Johnson told KTRK. “If you saw it driving down the road, you would notice that car.”

Family members said he was on his way to pick up his girlfriend in Katy when the incident occurred.

Cody Johnson’s death comes after he survived a summer motorcycle crash, KHOU reported. He recently recovered and would soon begin working a new job as a car salesman.

“He was making a big transition, but he had finally found his path,” Mike Johnson told KTRK. “He was, as he told me that morning, he was ‘finally happy.’ He had his whole world ahead of him.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact deputies at 713-274-9100.

Katy is about a 30-mile drive west from downtown Houston.

This story was originally published September 30, 2024 at 11:50 AM with the headline "19-year-old killed in road rage shooting driving to pick up girlfriend, TX reports say."