A gunman killed at least three people during a shooting in a Target car park in Texas before stealing two cars in a failed getaway attempt.

Lisa Davis, the Austin police chief, said the suspect is a man in his 30s with “a mental health history”.

Ms Davis said the suspect fled the scene in a stolen car, wrecked that car before stealing another from a car dealership. He was captured in south Austin by police who used a Taser to immobilise him.

The suspect was then taken into custody, Ms Davis told a news conference.

She said responding officers found three people who had been fatally shot in the Target parking lot.