HOUSTON – For the second time in the month of May, a Harris County murder defendant allegedly cut off his court-ordered GPS ankle monitor just before his trial was scheduled to begin.
A murder trial for 32-year-old Walter Pozos was scheduled to start last Wednesday, but according to records, but two days before his GPS monitor started generating a tamper alert early Monday morning.
It would have been Pozos’ second murder trial this year, after a mistrial was declared in February because of a hung jury.
For the 2nd time this month, a Harris County murder defendant allegedly cut off a GPS ankle monitor right before trial. First Lee Gilley, now Walter Pozos—charged in a 2023 crash after a 100+ mph flee that killed his passenger. https://t.co/BqNPDzxrbb
— KPRC 2 Bryce Newberry (@KPRC2Bryce) May 18, 2026
Pozos had been out of jail on a total $35,000 bond since Oct. 2023, the Harris County District Attorney’s Office confirmed.
In July of 2023, Pozos allegedly sped away from Harris County sheriff’s deputies at speeds over 100 miles per hour, which led to a crash, and one of his friends in the car passed away.
Another passenger was injured, according to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
We know this brings up questions about public safety, so KPRC 2 News has reached out to Harris County Pretrial Services, the agency tasked with monitoring defendants on bond to learn more about how this could have happened and what can be done to stop this from happening. We’re still waiting for a response.
The U.S. Marshals Service confirmed agents are involved in the search for Pozos alongside Harris County sheriff’s deputies. It’s not clear if he is still in Harris County.
Pozos now faces additional felonies in Harris County, including bail jumping and tampering with an electronic monitor, records show. Bond on his initial cases has been forfeited, according to court records.
The situation with Pozos comes just about two weeks after Lee Gilley, accused of strangling his pregnant wife Christa Bauer in Oct. 2024, cut off his ankle monitor and flew to Italy using a fake name, according to a federal criminal complaint.
Police in Milan stopped Gilley with forged travel documents, according to records, and he has now claimed asylum.