In 2017, Ernesto Gonzales vanished from his office in Harlingen, Texas. His truck was there; he was not. Three years later, after finally discovering Gonzales’s remains, the Texas Rangers and local police arrested his nephew, but the case (and the ensuing media-circus trial) fell apart in spectactular fashion. As it turns out, that wasn’t the only Harlingen-area investigation that crumbled under its own weight. Now, Lisa Olsen combs through relatives, officers, and the public record to find out what really happened to “El Gallito”—and why.
Garza worked on only a handful of murder cases during his seven years as a Ranger, a tenure that ended when he retired in 2023. That wasn’t atypical. DPS data obtained by the Observer through a records request shows that Texas Rangers opened 148 murder cases in 2024 and 2025—an average of one every two years per Ranger, based on the number of positions authorized by the Legislature.
[. . .]
Garza had neither Holland’s expertise in homicides nor his reputation as a “serial killer whisperer.” On a personal level, he thought Rangers were required to do too much. “If you want to do a good job, you can’t have too many cases on your plate,” Garza told the Observer in a March phone interview.
More stories about murder investigations
You Should’ve Said Something
“I had to do everything the jurors did—sit in every court session, examine each piece of evidence, look out from the jury box every day at a man accused of murder—but I wouldn’t participate in the deliberation unless two jurors dropped out.”
Murder-in-Law
“The twisted story of a domestic contract killing.”
The Violent Feud That Shocked the Horse World
“A prominent dressage trainer shot a belligerent student—and now maintains that he’s the real victim.”
Six Teenagers, a Brutal Murder and the Story They Couldn’t Take Back
“In 2002, a group of friends from North Carolina told a story that ruined all their lives. What if it wasn’t true?”
Was My Teacher Murdered?
“In 2002, Leslie Buck died under mysterious circumstances in Mystic, Connecticut. Two decades later, I went back to find out who she was — and what really happened.”
Name of the Father
“A wiseguy’s son steps out of his father’s shadow—and into the boxing ring. But the legacy of organized crime isn’t so easy to leave behind.”
