Former President George H.W. Bush remains hospitalized in Houston

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Former President George H.W. Bush will not leave a Houston hospital until he's made a full recovery.

A Bush spokesperson says the former president has had a few days where he hasn't had much energy, so doctors at Methodist Hospital are putting off his discharge until he's fully recovered.

Bush had been expected to go home sometime this weekend.

The 88-year-old has been in the hospital since Thanksgiving for treatment of a lingering cough related to bronchitis.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

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Police release info in hopes of identifying human remains found at abandoned apartment complex

Items found at the scene include: a decorative gold-colored dental work of the upper front teeth (upper middle); a white wristwatch (upper left); a white clip-on earring (upper right); black hair extensions with a purple ponytail holder; and a white and black hairclip (lower right); a gold-colored sandal, size 7 (lower left); Almost Famous brand jean shorts size 5; and a black bra.

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Police still have not been able to identify a woman whose skeletal remains were discovered last week on Houston's south side.

The remains were discovered September 17 in the overgrown parking lot of a vacant building at 6303 Cullen. Police found a series of items near the body including a white wrist watch, a size 7 gold-colored sandal and a white clip-on earring.

Police say the woman was between 30 and 45 years old and she had decorative gold-colored dental work on her upper front teeth.

Anyone with information in this case is urged to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600.

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Double murder remains mystery 7 years later

On Tuesday, September 13, 2005, Nick Munoz (left) and Chaz Kettner (right), both age 20, were gunned down at a gas station

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Crime Stoppers and investigators with the Houston Police Department are searching for the suspect responsible for the 2005 murder of Nick Munoz and Chaz Kettner. Yesterday marked the seventh anniversary of Nick Munoz' and Chaz Kettner's deaths and today would have celebrated Kettner's 28th birthday.

It has been seven years since 20-year-olds Nick Munoz and Chaz Kettner were gunned down at an area gas station. It was Tuesday, September 13, 2005, at approximately 10:35 pm, when Kettner and Munoz were approached by an unidentified black male while seated in their vehicle at a gas station located on the 2700 block of W. Sam Houston Parkway. The unknown suspect shot both of the victims while they were in the vehicle.

Kettner died where he was seated. Munoz attempted to flee, but collapsed, passing away near the door of the service station. The unknown suspect fled the scene in a green truck.

Anyone with information about the identity of the suspect is asked to contact Crime Stoppers of Houston at 713-222-TIPS (8477).

Crime Stoppers will pay up to $5,000 for any information called in to the 713-222-TIPS (8477) or submitted online at http://www.crime-stoppers.org/ that leads to the filing of felony charges or arrest of the suspect in this case. Tips can also be sent by text message. Text TIP610 plus your tip to CRIMES (274637). All tipsters remain anonymous.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Crime Tracker »

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Fate of strip club remains in judge's hands

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A Galleria area strip club is locked in a court battle that will determine if it should be shut down. The city and county both have accused Treasures of being a haven for prostitution, human trafficking, and drug use. Both sides were back in front of a judge on Friday.

The defense was putting on its case until late in the afternoon, trying to prove it has taken appropriate steps to curb illegal activity in the club.

Attorneys for the city and county played surveillance video showing the entrance at Treasures. They point out more than one dancer that particular day partially exposed -- an apparent violation, they say, of the strip club's own policy against showing certain portions of the body.

Plaintiff's attorney Fred Keys, Jr., said, "If you're seeing this at the front door, you can imagine what's taking place inside."

Keys notes that even managers who saw the dress didn't appear to stop the dancers.

The city and county are trying to prove that Treasures is a place where prostitution and drugs run rampant. They want a judge to deem it a public nuisance in order to shut it down. KTRK legal analyst Joel Androphy says that is not likely.

"The purpose of this lawsuit is to scare them into compliance, is to force Treasures to comply more with the law," Androphy said. "That's all this is about."

Testifying for the defense on Friday was a waitress who has worked at Treasures for the last year. In that time she says she has never seen prostitution.

She did testify however that on several occasions, "A dancer would get too close to a customer and start rubbing inappropriately."

The waitress says she would report it to a manager and that the customer would be removed and the dancer fired. She says the club has a strict policy on prostitution and drug use. The city and county claim 43 arrests dating back to 2008 prove a history of illegal activity there.

Attorneys for Treasures presented several forms that dancers have to sign showing they acknowledge they can be terminated for anything illegal including prostitution or drugs while on the job. They say they have taken this and other steps in order to limit such activity.

If the judge doesn't believe this and considers it a nuisance, she can shut Treasures down.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

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Woman who died years ago remains mystery

  PEARLAND, TX (KTRK) -- Police are hoping someone can help them identify a woman found dead in the Pearland area.

On March 19, Pearland police recovered skeletal remains from a property located in the 4600 block of Dixie Farm Road. At that time, the remains were collected and sent to first the Galveston County Medical Examiner's Office and later to Sam Houston State University for further examination.

DNA was recovered from the remains and sent off to the University of North Texas to determine if the remains could be matched to a missing person. The results of testing did not match any known individuals. The department is now asking for the public's help in identifying the remains.

The individual is believed to be a black female between the ages of 40 and 50. She would have stood between 4 feet, 10 inches and 5 feet, 4 inches. The forensic anthropologist estimated that the victim died between one and three years ago. At the time of her death the victim was wearing a blue shirt, Old Navy flare jeans and white size 6 Reebok tennis shoes.

"This was someone's daughter, someone's friend," said PPD Lt. Onesimo Lopez. "Someone is missing her."

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Steve Weaver at 281-997-4154.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Young father's murder remains unsolved

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A Houston man was gunned down after he responded to a knock at the door. Months after the murder near Midtown, his killer remains on the loose.

This crime happened at a home on Cleburne, near Dowling, not far from midtown, at about 7:30 in the evening on Saturday, February 25. The victim, 22-year old Jeremy Perry, answered the door and was shot multiple times.

Houston police investigators do not have a motive or any suspects at this time. They are in need of information. Perry's family says Jeremy was an architectural engineering student at HCC, and leaves behind a three-year-old daughter.

Jeremy's mother Sandra Perry said, "We really feel like Jeremy's story is a special one because he really didn't deserve what basically happened to him. It is such a travesty. If anyone knows anything, if they basically saw anything, it would be neat for them to just call Crime Stoppers."

Jeremy was an organ donor, donating four life-saving organs, which has helped the family deal with the loss, but of course, they want to see the case solved.

Anyone with information about the identity of the suspect is asked to contact Crime Stoppers of Houston at 713-222-TIPS (8477). Crime Stoppers will pay up to $5,000 for any information that leads to the filing of felony charges or arrest of the suspect in this case. Tips can also be sent by text message. Text TIP610 plus your tip to CRIMES (274637). All tipsters remain anonymous.

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Human remains found in southwest Houston

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Police say they're investigating human remains found in southwest Houston Tuesday afternoon.

The bones were found in the 1500 block of East Anderson Road at about 4:45pm Tuesday. A property owner was checking his property after a reported robbery a day before. While checking the property, he walked into a nearby wooded area and saw what he believed was a human skull. He then called police. Officers responded and found the skeletal remains of a human body, other animal bones and household trash in a heavily wooded area.

Police say the remains are completely decomposed and they have not yet determined the gender.

The investigation is continuing. Anyone with information in this case is urged to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Officials identify burned remains

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The body of a woman found burned in a field in southeast Houston has been identified.

Investigators at the Harris County Institute of Forensic Science identified the remains as Sherell Baldwin.

Baldwin's remains were found behind a business on Scranton and Easthaven around midnight Thursday. They were on fire, officials said.

According to workers at a nearby business, it was a small fire captured on surveillance cameras that first caught the eye of an outside security company.

A guard there called 9-1-1, but it wasn't until firefighters arrived that authorities realized it was a woman's body on fire.

Police still have little to go on, but they do believe someone dumped Baldwin's body and then intentionally set it on fire.

Anyone with any information about Baldwin's death is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

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Storage owner reunites cremated remains with family

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A mystery that began with in a U-Haul storage unit has been solved.

It is a modern storage warehouse in north Harris County -- temporary housing for the overflow from homes. But when a renter emptied her storage unit two months ago, she left something -- or someone -- behind. "She was like in the middle with trash and debris around," storage manager Jesus Muniz said. Muniz retrieved kept it in a plastic bag, feeling it's personal to someone. "Decided to keep her, bring her in, and started trying to locate her family members or relatives," he said. Since the day he found the cremated remains, Muniz tried to track down the woman who left Gloria Jean Jones behind, but her numbers were disconnected. He even went to the apartment where the last renter had lived but nothing. He had a name, birth and death date and a birth certificate of a relative of Gloria Jones also were left in the unit. But we ran a Public Data check and made a phone call to a Mrs. Lizzie Jones. "Would they give 'em to her mama?"Jones asked us during a phone conversation. "Yes, they'd give them to her mama," we replied. It was the break for which Muniz had hoped. So he brought what he had been keeping to his car, and a long drive later in southeast Houston, an 80-year-old mother was reunited with her daughter. The pictures matched. Jones says she had always asked her granddaughter about Gloria Jeans' ashes but never knew where they'd been taken. Now she does. "My Jean, oh Lord, thank you Jesus. Thank you mister," Jones said. Gloria Jean Jones is now home, thanks to a stranger who solved a mystery and brought peace to a mother. (Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Cremated remains found at former funeral home

STAFFORD, TX (KTRK) -- After finding the abandoned remains of 11 adults and four children, authorities are searching for their families. This is all part of an investigation into the Rylan C Scott Funeral Home off of FM 2234 In Stafford.

We tracked down a family member of one of the deceased and he told us his aunt died years ago. Her body was cremated but then apparently her remains just sat at a funeral home for Stafford police to find abandoned. It was a tip from the Texas Funeral Service Commission that led Stafford police in March to the chapel of what was once the Rylan C. Scott Funeral Home. Inside, next to the abandoned pews were two boxes with the remains of 15 people. "This is a very unusual case," Stafford Police Department's Raphael Virata said. Virata says they retrieved the boxes, stored them in their evidence room and went to work. The ashes were well labeled so they were able to connect eight sets with family but seven remain unclaimed. That's how police hope the public can help. "We just want to make sure that these remains are given back to the family," Virata said. Detectives are requesting assistance in locating family members of the following deceased persons: Rosie Lee Johnson
Bobby J. Jones
Raynor Wyatt (child)
Ayana Etuknwa (child)
Roger Dale Norris
Rabon Smith Sr.
Juanita H. Williams
"That's my auntie, my mama's sister," Richard Vanderbull said. We found Johnson's sister and nephew at their home in north Houston. Vanderbull says his aunt passed away 10 years ago. His family likely chose the funeral home because Rylan Scott once lived next door with his mother and stepfather. But no one answered at the Scott house Monday night. Vanderbull was surprised to be re-visiting his aunt's death all these years later. "Disrespectful, yes, it's very disrespectful, but I wouldn't think Rylan would do nothing like that," he said. According to the Texas Funeral Service Commission, the funeral home had a half-dozen violations before its license was eventually canceled last September, and Scott, we're told by police, then vacated the strip center. Scott has been indicted on two felony charges -- theft and tampering with a government document -- for allegedly selling a cemetery plot that he didn't own. Stafford police say he doesn't face charges related to these ashes being left behind. Meanwhile, the current owners of the building say they're just about to open a new funeral home there, but had no knowledge of what happened under the previous ownership. Family members or anyone with information is requested to contact the Stafford Police Department at 281-208-6991. (Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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