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Jason Landry's family remain hopeful for answers
Despite the heavy rain, many showed up for a vigil for missing Texas State University student Jason Landry. It's been three years since the then-21-year-old mysteriously disappeared while driving home to Missouri City for Winter break. FOX 26's Matthew Seedorff has more from family and friends remaining hopeful for answers.
LULING, Texas - An emotional prayer service was held Friday night in Luling, Texas for Jason Landry.
The student from Texas State University mysteriously disappeared on Dec. 13, 2020, when he was 21 years old. Despite several strenuous searches combing dozens of miles over the last three years, Jason still hasn’t been located.
"I never in my wildest dreams thought we’d be here 3 years later," said Kent Landry, Jason’s father. "Without any direction or answer."
On Dec. 13, 2020, the then 21-year-old left San Marcos, Texas bound for his family’s home in Missouri City, TX around 11 p.m. His phone pinged several times along Highway 80. Then at 11:25 p.m., he stopped using a navigation app and switched to Snapchat, where his digital footprint went dark. A volunteer firefighter located Jason’s crashed car roughly an hour later, along a rural dirt road in Luling. The 21-year-old’s phone was inside the crashed vehicle. His backpack and clothes were discovered scattered along the rural road.
"You can’t begin to grieve until you know that person is gone," said Kent Landry. "We just keep waiting and praying for [answers]."
Search crews have spent countless hours and resources looking for Jason Landry.
"We’ve never come up with anything other than what was initially found at the scene," said Gene Robinson from RP Search Services. "There’s been a lot of effort put into this. We’ve seen ponds drained [and] we’ve had dogs everywhere. "For us not to be able to come up with something is highly unusual."
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"The more you look, and you don’t find something, the more you have to entertain the possibility that somebody might have been involved and he’s not here because he’s probably in a shallow grave somewhere because of someone," said Kent.
The Office of the Attorney General is investigating the case.
They say Jason appeared to be in a single-car accident, and nothing has been found that suggests he was planning to meet anyone in Luling.
On Wednesday, they released a statement that reads:
"Three years ago this week, a Texas college student named Jason Landry disappeared. Attorney General Paxton and the Office of the Attorney General’s Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit wish to reaffirm their unwavering commitment to this investigation and to pursuing all credible information received from the public. Mr. Landry, a student at Texas State University, was last seen on December 13, 2020. Mr. Landry’s abandoned vehicle was discovered in the early morning hours of December 14, 2020, on a rural roadway just outside of Luling, Texas.
Since receiving a request for investigative assistance from the Caldwell County District Attorney’s Office and the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office in February 2022, the OAG’s Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit has dedicated hundreds of hours of investigative resources to the case. This includes conducting extensive forensic testing, issuing numerous search warrants, interviewing dozens of witnesses, and enlisting the assistance of experts with a wide range of specialized backgrounds from multiple government agencies and non-profit organizations.
In November 2023, the OAG Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit hosted an extensive roundtable case review of the Landry investigation alongside experts in digital forensics, geospatial sciences, data mapping, criminal intelligence, and other relevant fields from agencies including the FBI, the Texas Rangers and Department of Public Safety, Texas Search and Rescue, the Caldwell County District Attorney’s Office, and the Travis County Constable’s Office (Precinct 3). The panel thoroughly examined all parts of the case and concluded that all credible leads and investigative steps have been thoroughly pursued up to this point. The Texas OAG’s Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit considers this matter to be an ongoing and active investigation and encourages anyone with credible information about the case to contact the Unit at https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/coldcasetips. Our thoughts remain with the Landry family during this difficult time."
Search crews plan to look over the Luling area again Saturday morning. A $20,000 reward is being offered for information leading to Jason.
"Jason is probably in the hands of the Lord and he’s in a better place than me and both of us," said Landry. "That makes the waiting bearable because we know one day I’ll be able to hug him again."