It’s been three years since Texas State University student Jason Landry disappeared. For his father, Kent Landry, he does not believe his son is alive.
Jason vanished after what appeared to be a one-vehicle car crash near Luling on December 13, 2020.
There have been dozens of searches by multiple agencies, friends, family, and neighbors. Those searches have yielded nothing.
“I don’t know what happened,” Pastor Kent Landry said Friday during a conversation with KPRC 2 Investigator Joel Eisenbaum.
Kent Landry said he simply does not know if his son was the victim of a crime or an accident.
It was Kent Landry who drove hours to get to a lonely road in Caldwell County to find the clothes his son was believed to be wearing that day, strewn across the road.
Pastor Landry has also softened his stance on earlier criticism of the initial investigations by a DPS Trooper and later the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office.
KPRC 2 Investigates found in 2022, that the initial investigation into the incident was substandard.
Jason’s vehicle was towed to an impound yard, and not secured. The crash location was never treated as a crime scene.
Three years later, there is no convincing evidence that a crime occurred.
“You know, I’ve thought about that a lot. And I think about those investigators. And I’ve come to the place where. I have to let that go. I think if if you put Sergeant Flores, Trooper Flores, I can’t remember his rank off top of my head in the same situation. I do not think he would do the same thing. I think he had a very bad day for whatever reason and made a series of incredibly poor choices where he did not do the basics,” Kent Landry said.
Saturday another search will be carried out near the initial scene.
Kent Landry said he knows he will see his son again, but it may be in Heaven.
“And when you see him again, what will you say to him?” Eisenbaum asked.
“That’s a good question. You know, as a dad, got to be honest, part of it, you’re going to say I’m sorry because as a dad, your job is to protect your kids,” Landry said.
Landry said there is up to a $20,000 reward for critical information that helps solve the case.
The latest from the Texas Attorney General’s Cold Case Unit:
“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.”
