Missing West U man found in San Antonio
A West University man who had been missing for nearly a week — and who authorities believed may have planned his own disappearance — was found early Tuesday.
Brett Detamore, a 38-year-old husband and father, was located and taken to a hospital for medical evaluation and treatment, Harris County Precinct 1 Constable Alan Rosen tweeted just minutes into Tuesday morning.
Detamore was found Monday night at a bus stop in San Antonio, Rosen said during a news conference Tuesday afternoon. Detamore seemed “fazed and a bit disheveled,” Rosen said. He returned to Houston voluntarily.
When the search had been ongoing Monday, West University Police Chief Ken Walker said there was no evidence Detamore had fallen victim to foul play. Walker also suggested Detamore might have planned his “disappearance” in advance, but officials didn’t elaborate on that theory Tuesday.
“We are so happy that this case came to the resolution that it did,” Rosen said.
Walker said he couldn’t rule out the possibility of criminal charges being filed in connection with the case, saying investigators were exploring different avenues to determine whether anyone involved in Detamore’s disappearance committed a crime.
The dayslong search and investigation cost taxpayers thousands of dollars, Walker said, but explained authorities had not yet determined the financial grand total the agency incurred on the case. However, between bringing in EquuSearch for two days and staffing the search, Walker was sure the number would at least be measured in thousands.
Walker said investigators issued subpoenas for phone and financial records as part of the agency’s search for Detamore.
Detamore was reported missing to police at 8:46 a.m. Wednesday, Walker said. At 1 p.m., the Houston Police Department notified West University police that the burned remains of Detamore’s car had been found in Bear Creek Park. Most of the identifying information on the car had been destroyed, but police found an intact VIN number they managed to match to Detamore, Walker said.
The discovery of the burned vehicle led to a two-day search of the park, but Detamore wasn’t found. At least one witness came forward to report seeing a man walking away from the burning vehicle.
A video camera also recorded Detamore’s vehicle leaving West University at 4:21 a.m. Wednesday, Walker said.
It wasn’t unusual for Detamore to leave home that early, Walker said. It’s not clear what led his wife to report him missing just hours later.
“He was not following anyone and no one was following him,” Walker said.
Walker said police had no information about domestic or mental health issues that may have led to Detamore’s disappearance.
“It’s really hard for me to understand, if there’s no foul play involved, how a person could put his family through this kind of trauma,” Walker said.
Other active investigations related to Detamore’s disappearance remained ongoing, according to authorities.
The Harris County Fire Marshal’s Office had its arson investigators working to determine whether a crime had been committed related to the burned vehicle, Rosen said. The West University Police Department also was investigating “people that may have been complicit in some things that were occurring,” Walker said.
“We’re saying there may have been people who may have been complicit in other things he was involved with,” Walker said. “We don’t know. But we’re still investigating to determine if other crimes were committed and, if so, who was involved.”
Rosen had spent time with Detamore’s family and said they were thankful for the public’s thoughts and prayers during the search. They requested privacy after Detamore was found.