A cardiologist who once treated the former US president George HW Bush has been fatally shot by another cyclist while riding through a Houston medical complex. Police were trying to determine if the shooting was random or a targeted act.



The shooting happened around 9am on Friday as Dr Mark Hausknecht was going northbound through the Texas Medical Center, said Troy Finner of Houston police.

“The suspect was on a bicycle as well. Rode past the doctor, turned and fired two shots. The doctor immediately went down,” Finner said. Hausknecht, 65, hit at least once, was taken to a nearby hospital, where he died.

Hausknecht was going in to work at Houston Methodist hospital when he was shot, the hospital’s CEO said in an email to staff.

The area where the shooting took place is part of a five-hectare complex of hospitals and medical institutions, including the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, and is busy with traffic and pedestrians during the day.

Authorities said the suspect was wearing a gray warm-up jacket, khaki shorts and a tan baseball cap.

Hausknecht treated Bush in February 2000 for an irregular heartbeat after the former president complained about lightheadedness while visiting Florida. The cardiologist appeared with Bush at a news conference after his treatment.

Bush offered his condolences to Hausknecht’s family. “Mark was a fantastic cardiologist and a good man,” Bush said in a statement. “I will always be grateful for his exceptional, compassionate care.”

Hausknecht had been in medical practice for almost 40 years and specialised in cardiovascular disease, said Marc Boom, president of Houston Methodist hospital.

Hausknecht was part of the hospital’s medical staff as well as its DeBakey Heart and Vascular Center.

“His patients appreciated his kind bedside manner and the extra time he took to answer their questions and fully explain their condition and treatment,” Boom said in an email to employees. “Our employees who worked with him said patients were so proud to call him their doctor.”

