Exactly one year to the day that a Texas college student was reported missing, authorities found what they believe to be his body, and arrested three men who are now behind bars on murder charges.
According to People Magazine, 21-year-old Zuhyr Kaleem of Katy, Texas, was last seen on April 28, 2019, and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office officially classified his disappearance as a homicide last August.
Last Saturday, April 25, police arrested two men— Jose Varela and Auston Walker, both 21 and after speaking with officers — both made statements allegedly admitting to their role in the murder of Kaleem.
By Tuesday, officers had tracked down a third man, Eric Aguilar, 22, and arrested him. Aguilar directed cops to a home in nearby Grimes County, where a fourth man, Gannon Gotlieb, 23, allegedly admitted to authorities that he buried Kaleem’s body on his property in the community of Todd Mission.
While a forensic investigation to confirm the identity of the remains is still pending, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office told People they were “believed” to the remains of Kaleem.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez offered the Kaleem family condolences in a news release posted to his department’s Facebook page. “Our condolences go out to his family,” Gonzalez said.
Kaleem’s family said he was enrolled at Lone Star College with hopes to attend the University of Houston in the future. Authorities believe Kaleem was the victim of a drug deal gone bad.
The suspects- Varela, Walker and Aguilar were charged with capital murder and are being held in the Harris County jail. Aguilar’s bond was set at $200,000. The other two received no bond, according to online court records.
Gotlieb is accused of tampering with a human corpse and is being held in the Grimes County jail, but no information regarding his bond was not available.
