Two of Texas’ most dangerous fugitives are off the streets — and law enforcement didn’t have to pay a dime to find them.
The Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed this week that Carl James Hegert and Brien Keith Coleman, both listed among the state’s vaunted Texas 10 Most Wanted, were captured within days of each other in late February 2026. No Crime Stoppers rewards were paid out in either case — a detail that speaks to the quality of the investigative groundwork behind both arrests.
Houston Apartment Takedown: Carl James Hegert
Hegert, 40 years old, was taken into custody on February 18, 2026, at an apartment complex in Houston. The arrest was a joint operation involving DPS Criminal Investigations Division Special Agents, Texas Highway Patrol Troopers from the Texas Anti-Gang Violent Crimes Unit, and the U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Violent Offenders Fugitive Task Force. It was, by any measure, a coordinated effort — the kind that doesn’t happen without serious intelligence work behind the scenes. DPS confirmed the capture was made working off investigative information.
Hegert’s criminal record stretches back to 2006. It’s a long and troubling list: theft of a firearm, sexual assault of a child, assault causing bodily injury to a family member, failure to register as a sex offender, and manufacture and delivery of a controlled substance. He’d been discharged from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice as recently as January 2025 — and by October of that same year, he was already wanted again. Charges out of Waller County for larceny and out of San Jacinto County for failure to comply with sex offender registration requirements put him back on law enforcement’s radar fast. DPS noted that Hegert is a convicted sex offender required to register annually.
Less than a year between release and re-listing on the state’s most wanted roster. That’s not a statistic — that’s a pattern.
Hegert has known ties to Harris County, which includes Houston, making the apartment complex arrest feel less like a lucky break and more like the inevitable result of agents knowing exactly where to look. His profile on the DPS captured list confirms the Houston location and the agencies involved. A separate account of the bust underscored the multi-agency coordination that made the takedown possible.
Waco Traffic Stop: Brien Keith Coleman
Five days later, on February 23, 2026, it was Coleman’s turn. Brien Keith Coleman, 39, was arrested during a routine-looking traffic stop in Waco — though there’s rarely anything truly routine when U.S. Marshals are involved. The operation brought together DPS Special Agents, the U.S. Marshals Lone Star Fugitive Task Force, and THP Troopers. DPS listed both men among its recently captured fugitives.
A Program That Gets Results
Still, it’s worth stepping back for a moment. The Texas 10 Most Wanted program exists precisely for situations like this — to focus public attention and law enforcement resources on individuals who represent an active, ongoing threat to communities. The fact that both Hegert and Coleman were brought in without Crime Stoppers tip money changing hands suggests that dedicated task forces, working on solid investigative leads, can close cases on their own terms.
That doesn’t make the program’s public component irrelevant — tip lines and community awareness have driven countless captures over the years. But it does serve as a reminder that behind every fugitive apprehension, there are often weeks or months of quiet, methodical work that never makes the evening news.
Two men wanted, two men caught. For the communities of Waller, San Jacinto, and Harris counties — and wherever Coleman’s alleged crimes touched lives — that’s the only number that matters right now.
