{ "id": "2024-03-04-texas-am-corpus-christi-caleb-harris-missing-student", "slug": "texas-am-corpus-christi-caleb-harris-missing-student-2024-03-04", "institution": { "name": "Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi", "shortName": "TAMU-CC", "state": "TX", "type": "public-r2", "alertSystemName": "Islander Alert", "enrollment": 11000 }, "incident": { "date": "2024-03-04", "endDate": "2024-06-24", "type": "missing-person", "cleryCategory": "missing-student", "headline": "Missing-student notification issued; remains later found in a wastewater well", "headlinePublic": "Missing-student notification issued; remains later found in a wastewater well", "summary": "On the morning of Monday, March 4, 2024, [Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_A%26M_University%E2%80%93Corpus_Christi) student [Caleb Harris, 21](https://www.kiiitv.com/article/news/local/texas-am-cc-student-reported-missing-monday/503-34ca89cc-5f96-47c3-a7ac-0654fca08037), was reported missing at 11 AM CST after his roommates noticed an undelivered UberEats order outside the apartment door, his truck still in the lot, and his keys and wallet still inside the apartment (his cell phone was missing). The Corpus Christi Police Department, working with TAMU-CC University Police, distributed a missing-student notification under the HEOA framework. His [remains were discovered in a nearby wastewater collection well on June 24, 2024](https://news4sanantonio.com/news/local/human-remains-found-near-the-apartment-of-missing-student-caleb-harris-local-news-near-me-crime-law-persons-find-them-corpus-christi) and positively identified on July 17, 2024.", "outcome": "Remains discovered in a wastewater collection well near Harris's apartment on June 24, 2024 by City of Corpus Christi water-system employees, and positively identified on July 17, 2024 by the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification through DNA analysis. Manner of death officially undetermined.", "resolution": "confirmed-threat", "casualties": { "killed": 1, "injured": 0 } }, "alerts": [ { "sequence": 1, "type": "follow-up", "timestampApprox": "Mid-July 2024, after remains were positively identified by University of North Texas on July 17, 2024", "channel": "email", "verbatimText": "Dear Islanders,\n\nIt is with great sadness that I write to you with the news that Caleb Harris, an Islander student who went missing more than four months ago, has been confirmed deceased. Throughout his absence, we had hope for a different outcome. We now mourn his loss.\n\nCaleb was not just a student; he was a cherished son and beloved brother. He was a kind friend and a valued member of our campus community. His passion for adventure and his enthusiasm for life were just part of Caleb’s Islander impact.\n\nI want to express my gratitude to everyone in our community who did what they could to find Caleb. From joining search parties to sharing social media posts, the outpouring of support was truly remarkable. These actions exemplified the very best of our Islander spirit.\n\nAs we navigate this difficult time, let us hold Caleb’s family, friends, and classmates in our thoughts and in our prayers. Throughout those challenging months, I had the privilege of meeting the people closest to Caleb and seeing the strength of their bond, the depth of their love, and the unwavering hope that they would find him.\n\nPlease remember that counseling and support services are available to anyone in our community struggling with this news, whether you knew Caleb personally or not.\n\nThe University Counseling Center offers free counseling to all students. They can be reached at 361.825.2703. Press 2 to talk with a counselor after-hours.\nTAMU-CC offers an online student support app, called TELUS, that allows 24/7 access to professional counseling by phone or chat in multiple languages. Learn more at https://www.tamucc.edu/counseling/telus.php.\nCare & Assistance within the Dean of Students Office offers a variety of student support. Email deanofstudents@tamucc.edu or 361.825.6219 to learn more.\nFaculty and staff have access to our Employee Assistance Program which offers 24/7 support, resources, and information for employees and retirees.\nNationwide, anyone can call the Mental Health Hotline, 988, to connect with resources and information.\n\nLet us remember Caleb with gratitude for the time we were privileged to spend with him. His memory will forever remain a part of our university community and we will honor his legacy at a remembrance ceremony this fall.\n\nWith deepest sympathies,\n\nKelly M. Miller, Ph.D.\n President & CEO\n Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi", "isVerbatimConfirmed": true, "sourceUrl": "https://www.tamucc.edu/campus-announcements/message-from-the-president-caleb-harris.php", "sourceDescription": "Message from the President: Caleb Harris (TAMU-CC campus announcements)", "annotations": [ "Full official President Kelly M. Miller community message recovered from tamucc.edu campus announcements.", "Reconstructed; the remains were discovered June 24, 2024 by city water-system maintenance employees in a wastewater collection well, and positively identified as Harris on July 17, 2024", "The 112-day gap between Harris's disappearance (March 4) and the discovery of remains (June 24) was one of the longer active missing-student notification periods in modern Texas higher education", "The University of North Texas Center for Human Identification is the state's primary forensic identification facility, its involvement reflects the multi-institution scientific infrastructure HEOA cases sometimes require" ], "characterCount": 2375 } ], "context": "Caleb Harris was a 21-year-old [Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi student](https://www.kiiitv.com/article/news/local/texas-am-cc-student-reported-missing-monday/503-34ca89cc-5f96-47c3-a7ac-0654fca08037) who lived in an apartment near campus with roommates. On the early morning of Monday, March 4, 2024, doorbell footage at 12:56 AM CST showed Harris and roommates playing with a puppy in the apartment parking lot. At [2:20 AM CST he told a roommate he was going to order UberEats](https://www.kiiitv.com/article/news/local/caleb-harris-disappearance-timeline/503-ea986866-628c-4208-95c7-1f51762d6dd9), and at 2:24 AM CST he sent a Snapchat video to his younger sister. His cellphone shared its last location with the nearest tower at 3:12 AM CST. The UberEats delivery arrived at 3:20 AM CST and was left at the door, untouched. At 11 AM CST, his roommates noticed the undelivered food, his truck still parked, and his keys and wallet inside the apartment, but his cell phone was missing. They reported him missing. TAMU-CC University Police, in coordination with the [Corpus Christi Police Department](https://www.kristv.com/news/local-news/caleb-harris-family-doubles-reward-money-leading-to-missing-students-safe-return), distributed a missing-student notification under the [Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_Education_Opportunity_Act) framework. After 112 days of searching, on June 24, 2024, [city water-system employees doing maintenance discovered human remains in a wastewater collection well](https://news4sanantonio.com/news/local/human-remains-found-near-the-apartment-of-missing-student-caleb-harris-local-news-near-me-crime-law-persons-find-them-corpus-christi) near the apartment. The University of North Texas Center for Human Identification positively identified the remains as Harris. The autopsy listed the manner of death as 'undetermined.' The case is one of the most prolonged active HEOA missing-student notifications in modern Texas higher education and underscores the structural challenge of finding a student who never traveled far from home.", "keyFindings": [ "TAMU-CC's missing-student notification was issued the same day Harris was reported missing, meeting the HEOA 24-hour window with hours to spare", "The 112-day gap between disappearance and discovery is one of the longest active missing-student periods in modern Texas higher education", "The fact that Harris's remains were ultimately discovered in a wastewater collection well within walking distance of his apartment demonstrates how HEOA's geographic scope can be deceptively narrow", "The University of North Texas Center for Human Identification's role illustrates the multi-institution scientific infrastructure HEOA missing-student notifications sometimes require" ], "sources": [ { "title": "Message from the President: Caleb Harris (TAMU-CC campus announcements)", "url": "https://www.tamucc.edu/campus-announcements/message-from-the-president-caleb-harris.php", "type": "official-archive" }, { "title": "Texas A&M-CC student Caleb Harris reported missing (KIII-TV)", "url": "https://www.kiiitv.com/article/news/local/texas-am-cc-student-reported-missing-monday/503-34ca89cc-5f96-47c3-a7ac-0654fca08037", "type": "local-media" }, { "title": "FULL INTERVIEW: CCPD releases detailed timeline of Caleb Harris disappearance (KIII-TV)", "url": "https://www.kiiitv.com/article/news/local/caleb-harris-disappearance-timeline/503-ea986866-628c-4208-95c7-1f51762d6dd9", "type": "local-media" }, { "title": "CCPD: Human remains found in wastewater well identified as Caleb Harris (KRIS-TV)", "url": "https://www.kristv.com/news/local-news/in-your-neighborhood/corpus-christi/ccpd-human-remains-found-in-wastewater-well-identified-as-caleb-harris", "type": "local-media" }, { "title": "Human remains found near the apartment of missing student Caleb Harris (News4SA)", "url": "https://news4sanantonio.com/news/local/human-remains-found-near-the-apartment-of-missing-student-caleb-harris-local-news-near-me-crime-law-persons-find-them-corpus-christi", "type": "local-media" }, { "title": "Two years later: Remembering Caleb Harris, Texas A&M-CC student whose tragic death still haunts Corpus Christi (KENS5)", "url": "https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/texas/remembering-caleb-harris-in-corpus-christi/503-e2886a6a-5443-4c8b-99b5-9dddc744fdd9", "type": "local-media" } ], "confidence": "high", "tags": [ "missing-student", "missing-person", "heoa", "texas", "public-r2", "off-campus-housing", "long-search", "undetermined-manner", "ubereats" ], "dateAdded": "2026-05-03", "lastUpdated": "2026-07-17", "addedBy": "ingestion" }