Two Houston Police Department officers are under criminal investigation by the Texas Rangers after one of them secretly placed a GPS tracker on a suspect’s vehicle without a warrant, and both allegedly lied to federal investigators about their involvement.
Former officer Juan Gonzalez and Sgt. Peter Vu are the subjects of search warrants filed by Texas Ranger Eric Lopez, who identified them as potential targets of a grand jury probe. The investigation centers on charges of unlawful installation of a tracking device and, potentially, official oppression. Neither officer has been charged with a crime.
According to sworn affidavits filed in the warrants, the FBI obtained video from September 22, 2025, showing Gonzalez crouching near the right rear wheel well of a pickup truck at the Carmel Creek Apartments on Hollister Street in northwest Houston. A loud snapping sound is heard on the recording, consistent with a magnetic tracker attaching to the vehicle. Gonzalez then returned to an unmarked vehicle that Lopez identified as belonging to Vu, and the two left. No warrant was ever obtained for the tracker.
The Harris County District Attorney’s Office confirmed it was never consulted and no tracking order was ever sought.
The truck belonged to one of two brothers who were already under separate FBI investigation. The brothers discovered the device and drove to a nearby gas station, where they attached it to a random vehicle before reporting the incident to FBI Gang Task Force supervisor David Sobeck in October.
They provided two videos, one showing the placement of the tracker and another showing the device itself.
When Sobeck confronted the officers, both initially denied any involvement. They later admitted to their own supervisor, HPD gang division Lt. DeWayne Curtis, that they had lied to cover for themselves. Gonzalez told Curtis he personally owned the tracker and had intended it as a ploy to draw suspects out of their residence, but claimed he was startled when a man came outside and accidentally attached it to the vehicle.
Overtime records show Vu documented his presence at the apartment complex that night. Gonzalez did not.
HPD Chief Noe Diaz suspended Vu for 15 days without pay. Gonzalez submitted a resignation letter around the same time, effective April 18, after nine years with the department. Vu, a 19-year veteran, remains employed as an officer according to Texas Commission on Law Enforcement records.
The Rangers’ investigation has also uncovered that a separate tracker was found on the same vehicle in May 2025, that device linked to someone with no apparent law enforcement connection. Lopez noted in his affidavit that records from the tracker’s manufacturer could help establish motive, identify possible co-conspirators, or determine whether the two devices were related.
Grand jury subpoenas and search warrants have been issued to LandAirSea Systems, the Illinois-based manufacturer of the device, for account and activation data. A second tracker tied to Gonzalez’ LandAirSea account was also found, activated in 2023.
The investigation adds to a recent pattern of scrutiny over HPD misconduct. Goines, a former HPD narcotics officer, was convicted in 2024 of two counts of felony murder after lying to obtain a no-knock warrant that led to the 2019 Harding Street raid and the deaths of two residents.
