AUSTIN, TX — Two of Texas' 10 Most Wanted Sex Offenders are back in custody after authorities arrested two men in Brownsville and Benbrook last week, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Abelardo Garza, 56, was arrested Sept. 3 in Brownsville after investigators followed up on tip information. DPS Criminal Investigations Division special agents, Brownsville police, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection Special Response Team and members of the U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Violent Offenders Fugitive Task Force located and arrested Garza at a residence.
A Texas Crime Stoppers reward will be paid in connection with Garza's arrest.
Garza had been wanted since June for failure to comply with sex offender registration requirements.
According to DPS, Garza was previously convicted of three counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child following an incident involving an 8-year-old girl in Cameron County. He received eight years of probation and was required to register quarterly as a sex offender for life.
Elliott Thomas Reed, 40, was arrested Sept. 2 in Benbrook. DPS Criminal Investigations Division special agents, along with officers from the Benbrook and Fort Worth police departments, located and arrested Reed at a residence after working from investigative information.
Reed had been wanted since April, when the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles issued a warrant for his arrest for violating his parole. A Dallas County warrant was also issued in May for failure to comply with sex offender registration requirements.
Since 2005, Reed has been convicted of several crimes, including sexual assault of a child involving a 14-year-old girl, evading arrest or detention with a vehicle, manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance, deadly conduct, unlawful carrying of a weapon and assault causing bodily injury to a family member. Reed was sentenced to four years in prison for the sexual assault of a child conviction.
Texas Crime Stoppers, funded by the Governor's Public Safety Office, offers cash rewards for information leading to the arrest of people on the state's 10 Most Wanted Fugitives, Sex Offenders and Criminal Illegal Immigrants lists.
DPS said 56 people on the three Texas 10 Most Wanted lists have been arrested so far in 2026, including 39 sex offenders and nine gang members. A total of $79,000 in rewards has been paid for tips that resulted in arrests.
Tipsters seeking a cash reward must submit information through one of three approved methods: calling the Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-252-TIPS (8477), submitting a web tip through the DPS Texas 10 Most Wanted website or submitting a tip through the Texas 10 Most Wanted Facebook page.
All tips are anonymous, according to DPS, and tipsters receive a tip number instead of providing their name.
Resources:
- More information about Abelardo Garza: https://www.dps.texas.gov/Texas10MostWanted/mostwanted/CapturedDetails?id=1972
- More information about Elliott Thomas Reed: https://www.dps.texas.gov/texas10mostwanted/MostWanted/CapturedDetails?id=1968
- Texas 10 Most Wanted lists and online tip information: https://www.dps.texas.gov/Texas10MostWanted/MostWanted
- Texas Crime Stoppers hotline: 1-800-252-TIPS (8477)
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