Man dies while in sheriff’s custody

A man who was detained and placed in the back of an Ector County Sheriff’s patrol car this week died while in custody.
David Shain Maestas, 47, was found unresponsive inside the sheriff’s patrol vehicle Tuesday following a call in Gardendale involving the Ector County Environmental Office and was sent to the Medical Center Hospital, sheriff’s authorities said.
But Maestas was pronounced dead at the hospital. Maestas’ body will be sent to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy. The investigation into Maestas’ death will be handled by the Texas Rangers as a matter of protocol, sheriff’s authorities said in a press statement.
Dispatchers sent Ector County Sheriff’s deputies to a location in the 1700 block of Gonzales Avenue to provide assistance to environmental health officials. Officials with the Texas Comptroller’s Office were also at the scene investigating a report that stolen property had been located, the sheriff’s office reported.
Sheriff’s authorities did not explain what Maestas’ suspected connection was to the stolen property or the environmental issue that was investigated on Gonzales Avenue. It was not explained why Maestas was being detained at the time of his arrest.