An Indian-American Sikh police officer died after being shot multiple times from behind in a “ruthless, cold-blooded way” during a traffic stop in the US state of Texas, a senior official said Saturday.

Sandeep Singh Dhaliwal, Sikh Harris County Sheriff’s deputy, was shot while conducting a traffic stop, Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said. He was in his early 40s.

Ed Gonzalez said Sandeep Dhaliwal, a 10-year veteran of the department, stopped a vehicle with a man and woman inside and one of them got out and shot him “ambush-style” at least twice in a “ruthless, cold-blooded way.”

The shooter was seen running to a shopping centre nearby, officials said.

“They immediately looked at his dashcam to see what the suspect looked like, they took a photo of the suspect on the scene with their phone and immediately got that out to our intel people,” Ed Gonzalez said.

Investigators were able to identify what the shooter looked like by watching Sandeep Dhaliwal’s dashcam video.

The vehicle the shooter was driving was found and is being investigated, officials said.

The gunman and the woman were taken into custody, they said.

Sandeep Dhaliwal was married and a father of three children.

“Deputy Sandeep Dhaliwal was a trailblazer. He was an example for many. He represented his community with respect and pride,” said Commissioner Adrian Garcia.