Two victims were shot and are believed linked, while autopsies remain pending in the two most recent Buffalo Bayou cases.
HOUSTON, Texas — Four men have been recovered from Houston waterways since Sept. 29, including two bodies found on consecutive days this week, as homicide detectives await autopsy findings and investigate whether any of the cases are connected.
The latest body was found Wednesday morning, Oct. 14, at 512 McKee St. near Buffalo Bayou and James Bute Park. Houston police said officers responded at about 9:30 a.m. after receiving a report of a deceased person in the water. Houston Fire Department paramedics pronounced the 23-year-old man dead at the scene. Police said there were no obvious signs of trauma. His identity remained pending verification by the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences, which also was expected to determine his cause of death through an autopsy.
The discovery came less than 24 hours after another unidentified man was found in water near a construction site at 625 North York St. Officers responded at about 8:20 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13, and Houston Fire Department paramedics pronounced the man dead at the scene, according to police. Authorities had not publicly released his identity, cause of death or manner of death as of Thursday. Homicide investigators said the case remained pending while they waited for autopsy findings.
Houston police have not announced evidence connecting the men found Tuesday and Wednesday to each other. Authorities also have not linked either of those deaths to two earlier cases involving Carlos Tzep Ajpop, 20, and Oliver Ortiz, 20. Both of those men suffered gunshot wounds, and detectives have said they believe their deaths are likely connected. Police have not said that all four deaths were caused by the same person, occurred under the same circumstances or are part of a broader pattern.
Tzep Ajpop was recovered from a body of water near 1001 West Loop South at about 6:05 p.m. Sept. 29. Houston police initially said there were no obvious signs of trauma when his body was found. Investigators later reported that an autopsy determined he had sustained a gunshot wound. Ortiz was found several days later, at about 9:45 a.m. Oct. 2, in water near 7300 Clinton Drive. Police said the investigation determined that Ortiz also had suffered a gunshot wound.
Detectives later established that Tzep Ajpop and Ortiz were last seen together Sept. 27 at 8701 Town Park in southwest Houston. Police said the men apparently left that location in separate vehicles but were believed to have been traveling together. Investigators also said the two may have participated in local car meet-ups. Their vehicles were later located near the 10500 block of Keegan Road. Police have said they believe the two deaths may have occurred at the same time, although investigators have not publicly identified a suspect or announced an arrest.
The two additional recoveries this week brought the number of bodies found in Houston waterways in the period from Sept. 29 through Oct. 14 to four. The close timing of the discoveries has drawn attention to the cases, but authorities have stressed through their investigations that a body being recovered from the same general waterway does not by itself establish a connection between deaths. In the North York Street and McKee Street cases, investigators were still waiting for forensic evidence needed to determine how the men died.
The McKee Street case illustrates why investigators are awaiting those results before drawing conclusions. Police said the 23-year-old found Wednesday showed no obvious external signs of trauma, but that observation does not establish a cause or manner of death. The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences is responsible for verifying identities and conducting examinations that can determine whether a death resulted from homicide, accident, natural causes or another circumstance. Police made no public determination about the cause in either of this week’s cases as of Thursday.
The earlier investigation involving Tzep Ajpop also showed how initial information can change after a forensic examination. Officers reported no obvious trauma when he was recovered Sept. 29, but police later said an autopsy determined he had suffered a gunshot wound. That finding, along with evidence developed in the investigation of Ortiz’s death, led detectives to say the two cases were likely connected. Authorities have not disclosed where the men were shot or identified who may have been responsible.
As of Thursday, Oct. 15, Houston homicide detectives continued investigating all four deaths. Police were awaiting identification and autopsy findings in the two most recent cases while separately seeking information about the fatal shootings of Tzep Ajpop and Ortiz. No official connection between the two groups of cases had been announced.
Author note: Last updated October 15, 2026.