DPS, Rangers Offering Increased Reward For Killer Of Texas Rancher

AUSTIN – The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) is asking for the public’s help in capturing Miguel Angel Osorio-Munoz, a fugitive who is wanted for the murder of John Holt in Gonzales County in 2000.

An increased reward of up to $6,000 is being offered for information that leads to the arrest of those responsible if the tip is received before the next featured Texas Rangers cold case is announced.

A $3,000 reward for information leading to an arrest is routinely offered on all cases on the Texas Rangers’ Unsolved Homicides website.

Holt was murdered in Gonzales County on June 25, 2000. He was a married father with two young daughters.

On the night he was murdered, Holt was seen arguing with his hired ranch hand, Cesar Alonso Osorio (later identified as Miguel Angel Osorio-Munoz) on the Holt Ranch near Harwood, Texas.

Moments later, a witness observed Osorio-Munoz flee the scene and subsequently found Holt deceased from a gunshot wound.

Arrest warrants for murder and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution were obtained on Osorio-Munoz. However, all efforts to locate him have been unsuccessful.

Osorio-Munoz was originally thought to have fled to Mexico.

Osorio-Munoz is approximately 45 years old now, 5 feet 5 inches tall, heavyset, with brown hair and brown eyes. He uses the alias of Cesar Alonso Osorio and Miguel Angel Osorio-Trujillo.

The two photos (right) were taken in 2000 and are the latest photos available.

To be eligible for the cash rewards, tipsters must provide information to authorities by calling the Crime Stoppers hotline at 800-252-TIPS (8477). All tips are anonymous.

Individuals also can submit information through the Texas Ranger cold case website or by contacting us at 800-346-3243 (DPS Missing Persons Hotline).

The DPS Texas Rangers’ Unsolved Homicides website provides information on more than 75 cases in an effort to help garner public interest in unsolved or “cold cases.”

Texas Crime Stoppers offers rewards (funded by the Governor’s Criminal Justice Division and administered by DPS) of up to $3,000 for information that leads to the arrest of those responsible for any Rangers cold case listed on the website. For more information, visit the Texas Ranger cold case website.

As part of a DPS public awareness program, one case from the Texas Ranger Unsolved Crimes Investigation (Cold Case) Program will be featured bi-monthly in an effort to generate new investigative leads and bring attention to these cold cases.

The Texas Crime Stoppers reward is increased up to $6,000 for the featured case in hopes that the higher reward money will generate additional tips. The higher reward amount will only be paid if the tip is submitted before the next case is featured.

The Texas Ranger Unsolved Crimes Investigation Program was created to assist Texas law enforcement agencies investigating unsolved murders or violent serial crimes. 

Since there is no statute of limitations for the offense of murder, investigators pursue these cases to a successful resolution or until no viable leads remain.