Corpus Christi authorities have confirmed that the human remains found in a wastewater station are those of Caleb Harris, the student who had been missing since March. The CCPD previously said a city employee discovered the human remains in a 40-foot-deep well near the apartment on June 24.
The remains “are approximately 2.4 sextillion times more likely to be observed if the unidentified remains originated from a biological child of (Caleb Harris’ parents) rather than if the unidentified remains originated from an unrelated individual from the Caucasian population,” the missing persons DNA Report issued by UNTCHI said, per police. This makes the identification almost a certainty.
This conclusion was reached after meticulous forensic analysis, providing a measure of closure to a community and family that had been anxiously awaiting news of his whereabouts. While the circumstances of his disappearance and the manner of his death are still under investigation, the Corpus Christi Police Department (CCPD) shared on Facebook on Wednesday, July 17, that forensic analysts with the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification (UNTCHI) determined that the remains “most likely” belong to Caleb after comparing a DNA analysis of the remains alongside DNA samples taken from his parents.
The Medical Examiner’s Office was previously unable to “make an identification” on the remains — which “bore no obvious signs of homicide — due to its “advanced state of decomposition.” It also was not able to provide a “manner or cause of death” at the time due to the advanced state of decomposition, the CCPD said.
Officials said the remains will be returned to the Nueces County Medical Examiner’s office, which will then issue a final autopsy report.
Harris’ family released a statement, saying, “we all have heavy hearts this evening as we learned of the positive identification of our sweet Caleb.” “We will grieve our son,” the statement continued. “Thank you for your prayers and support during this tragic time.”
Caleb, 21, disappeared near his apartment complex in the 1900 block of Ennis Joslin Road near Texas A&M University’s Corpus Christi campus on March 4. According to his family, he left his apartment around 3 a.m. local time on March 4 to pick up an Uber Eats order. However, his roommate later found the order outside the apartment, where it had been dropped off. Randy Harris, Caleb’s father, told the outlet that his son disappeared without his keys, wallet or car. He had also been in contact with Caleb shortly before he disappeared, according to NBC affiliate KRIS-TV.
At the time of his disappearance, the entire area was searched “many times over,” according to a spokesperson for the CCPD told the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. The investigation that developed over the ensuing months involved over “50 digital search warrants, submitted 82 preservation requests and analyzed over 1500 GB of data” to try to locate Caleb, per the CCPD.
The cause of death and the circumstances surrounding still remain a mystery, but the the investigation into Caleb’s death still “remains open,” and anyone with information is asked to contact the Corpus Christi Police Department Criminal Investigation Division at (361) 826-28
