At least 22 people have been found dead in Harris County bayous this year, according to the county’s medical examiner, a figure higher than Houston police had previously reported and one that has fueled public concern and speculation.
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The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences has uncovered 22 bayou deaths this year, more than Houston police had acknowledged, as per a Houston Chronicle report.
Houston bayous yielded six bodies in two weeks in September, a disturbing phenomenon. Even while local officials say the cases are unrelated, recent discoveries have raised fears about a serial killer.
Houston authorities report 15 deaths, but the county medical examiner reports 22.
Channelview reported the county's only non-Houston incident in June. Jodi Silva, a Houston Police Department spokesperson, said the county's tally of inevitable fatalities may not fall under HPD's jurisdiction. The office of Mayor John Whitmire refers inquiries to the police.
The medical examiner's reports exclude submerged vehicles and bodies of water. A body may have been deposited in the bayou upstream before being found elsewhere. Harris and Montgomery County authorities have not commented on pending investigations. In 2025, Fort Bend County had no cases.
The 22 deaths include 19 people. The victims are Douglas Swearingen, 44, found on January 11; Carl Newton, 24, on February 14; and Jade McKissic, 20, a University of Houston student found dead in Brays Bayou on September 15.
The medical examiner's records listed the causes of six deaths. Three accidental drownings and one methamphetamine-related drowning killed four people. One was a suicide, another a “cardiac death.” Thirteen of the 16 fatalities remain unsolved, and three are uncertain.
Nineteen of the victims were men, three were women, and their ages ranged from their teens to their 60s. The examiner's office found 13 Black, five white, and three Hispanic victims. One person's race was unknown.
In September, seven of 22 fatalities occurred, the highest monthly figure this year. Police found McKissic in Brays Bayou near the University of Houston and another victim in Greens Bayou on September 15. Police found one body in White Oak Bayou and three in Buffalo Bayou.
Houston homicide police are collecting bayou death records and awaiting autopsy results. Silva said there is no evidence linking the instances. “There is no connection between them, and we advise caution near the bayous,” she said. “Avoid bayou waters.” It has rapid currents and submerged branches that can trap you.
