(NewsNation) — Human remains discovered in a wastewater collection point last month have been identified as missing Texas college student Caleb Harris.
“We all have heavy hearts this evening as we learned of the positive identification of our sweet Caleb. We will grieve our son, but we are at peace knowing he is with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” Harris’ mother posted to Facebook.
The 21-year-old was last seen in the early hours of March 4 after he walked his dog just before 3 a.m. His father said Harris returned home with the dog, then left again and had not been seen since. Harris’ dad said Harris’ phone has been dead since then.
Here is the current timeline of events following Harris’ disappearance established by the Corpus Christi Police Department.
Caleb Harris disappears
March 4, 2024: 12:56 a.m. — A doorbell camera at a nearby apartment captured Harris, his friend and one of Harris’ roommates in the parking lot playing with the puppy belonging to the girlfriend of one of Harris’s roommates.
Harris and his friend played online video games for over an hour, with another former high school classmate currently residing in Colorado.
The three men returned to Harris’ apartment and their mutual friend departed shortly after.
2:20 a.m. — The second of Harris’ roommates told Harris he was going to bed. Harris told him he was going to stay up to order snacks from UberEats for his lunch later that day (Monday).
2:24 a.m. — Harris shared a Snapchat video with his younger sister that showed him walking the puppy through what appears to be the apartment parking lot.
3:03 a.m. — Harris sent a Snapchat photo to a high school friend living in San Antonio, Texas. The photo showed a small bridge over a drainage ditch on the 1900 block of Ennis Joslin, within a few hundred feet of the entrance to the apartment complex.
3:12 a.m. — Harris’ cellphone shared its last location with the nearest cellphone tower.
3:20 a.m. — The UberEats driver delivered Harris’ order to his apartment, leaving it outside near the front door, per the order’s request.
Search for Caleb Harris begins
11:00 a.m. — One of Harris’ roommates discovered the UberEats order outside the front door and Harris’ pickup truck parked in front of the apartment. Harris’ wallet and keys were left behind in his apartment; all that appeared to be missing was his cellphone.
Harris’ roommates, who described him as a homebody and a creature of habit, called the CCPD to report their friend missing after searching for him for a short time.
This timeline was constructed after thorough interviews with the 21-year-old’s friends, family and roommates.
A preliminary search of the apartment complex and the immediate area surrounding it revealed no signs of a struggle or violence, or any indication of a hit-and-run on the nearby roads.
According to a CCPD statement, firearms and fishing gear, including waders, that belonged to Harris were found in the apartment. His laptop was collected and was turned over to police for examination and analysis.
Human remains found
June 24, 2024: City water employees doing maintenance in the area discovered human remains in a wastewater collection well, the Corpus Christi Police Department said. The remains were too decomposed to identify, according to the Nueces County Medical Examiner’s Office.
June 26, 2024: Police announced the recovery of human remains found in a well near Harris’ apartment. The unidentified remains were found in an area that had been repeatedly searched after Harris disappeared.
July 9, 2024: Volunteers with the Uvalde Foundation for Kids helped search for Harris — three weeks after city workers found the human remains.
Volunteers with the foundation’s STOPNOW school patrol teams arrived in Corpus Christi, Texas, to aid in the search, the foundation said on Facebook.
Human remains identified
July 17, 2024: The human remains discovered in the wastewater collection point were determined to be those of Harris, according to forensic analysts with the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification.
The 21-year-old’s mother posted a statement to Facebook in response to the news of her son’s death.
“We all have heavy hearts this evening as we learned of the positive identification of our sweet Caleb. We will grieve our son, but we are at peace knowing he is with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” Becky Wright Harris wrote.
While the human remains were identified as Harris, an investigation into the 21-year-old’s disappearance and death remains open.
Investigators encourage anyone with information to contact the Corpus Christi Police Department Criminal Investigation Division at 361-826-2840 or submit an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers 888-TIPS (888-8477).