The wrecked vehicle had been bought at auction and delivered to a north Harris County repair business.
HARRIS COUNTY, TX — Two men were found dead Saturday morning inside a vehicle at an auto body shop in the Aldine area after employees began work on a car that had been delivered for repairs, authorities said.
Harris County sheriff’s homicide detectives and crime scene investigators were called to the 13600 block of Reeveston Road, near Lauder Road and the Hardy Toll Road. The deaths remain under investigation, and officials had not released the men’s names, their causes of death or any suspect information by Saturday evening.
Deputies were sent to the business around 8:30 a.m. after workers found the bodies inside the vehicle, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office said. Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said deputies arrived at an auto body shop and discovered two deceased males inside a vehicle. “CSI and Homicide Detectives are responding to the scene,” Gonzalez said in an early public update. The location sits in north Harris County near the Aldine area, a mix of industrial yards, repair shops and residential streets close to major roadways. Investigators treated the deaths as a scene requiring homicide detectives, though officials did not immediately say whether either man had visible injuries.
Detectives said the vehicle had been brought to the shop the day before the bodies were found. Employees started working on it Saturday morning and then noticed the bodies, according to the sheriff’s office. The car had recently been bought at an auction, authorities said. Later information from investigators said the vehicle arrived by tow truck Friday afternoon after being purchased outside Harris County. The new owner sent it to the repair shop because the vehicle was wrecked and could not be driven. Sgt. Michael Ritchie said investigators believed the bodies had been decomposing for more than 24 hours before they were discovered. Authorities did not say where the men died or whether they were already inside the vehicle when it was sold, loaded, transported or delivered.
The case left detectives working across several parts of the vehicle’s recent history. Investigators were expected to examine auction records, tow records, repair shop paperwork and any video from the business or nearby properties. Officials also were interested in speaking with the tow truck driver who delivered the vehicle, Ritchie said. The sheriff’s office said the information released Saturday was preliminary. The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences will work to identify the men and determine their causes and times of death. Those findings could shape whether the case remains a death investigation, becomes a homicide case or moves in another direction based on evidence from the vehicle and autopsies.
No charges had been announced Saturday, and authorities had not named a person of interest. The investigation appeared to focus first on the vehicle’s chain of custody. That includes where the vehicle was damaged, where it was auctioned, who bought it, who arranged the tow and when anyone last saw the vehicle before it reached Reeveston Road. Detectives also must determine whether the bodies were overlooked before the car reached the shop or placed there later. Officials did not release the make or model of the vehicle. They also did not say whether the men had identification with them, whether weapons were recovered or whether the vehicle showed signs of a crash tied to the deaths.
The discovery drew a large law enforcement response to the repair shop Saturday morning as investigators worked around the vehicle. Crime scene personnel documented the car and surrounding area while homicide detectives gathered statements. Workers at the shop had been preparing to repair the vehicle when the bodies were found, officials said. The business is on a commercial stretch of Reeveston Road, close to the Hardy Toll Road corridor and not far from neighborhoods in the Aldine area. The unusual path of the vehicle, from auction to tow truck to repair bay, made the timeline a central part of the early investigation.
By Saturday evening, the two men remained unidentified, and their causes of death were pending forensic examination. The next key step is the medical examiner’s review, along with follow-up interviews and records checks tied to the auction, tow and repair shop.
Author note: Last updated June 20, 2026.