The Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed the apprehension of two individuals who were listed among the state’s ten most wanted sex offenders. The arrests took place over two days in early September near Fort Worth and in Brownsville.
Elliott Thomas Reed, 40, was taken into custody on Wednesday, Sept. 2, at a home in Benbrook. Law enforcement had been seeking Reed since April 2026 after a warrant was issued for a parole violation. His criminal history includes convictions dating back to 2005 for sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl, evading arrest, drug offenses, weapons charges, and assault.
He previously received a four-year prison sentence for the child sexual assault conviction.
Abelardo Garza, 56, was arrested on Thursday, Sept. 3, at a residence in Brownsville. Authorities had been looking for Garza since June 2026 because he failed to meet sex offender registration requirements. DPS records indicate that Garza was previously convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child involving an 8-year-old girl in Cameron County.
He was sentenced to eight years of probation and mandated to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
