BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Opening statements began Tuesday in the trial of Cristobal Stephan Garzez, the man accused of killing tow truck driver David Zapata in a July 2025 crash in Harlingen. A jury was selected Monday to hear the case. Prosecutors Michael Benton and lead attorney Jared Gover told jurors that Garzez’s actions “literally [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Brownsville police say three children were hurt Wednesday morning when they were struck by a vehicle as they used a crosswalk on their way to school. Police said the auto-pedestrian crash occurred in the 5200 block of Southmost Boulevard near Southmost Elementary School. The students were transported to a local hospital [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Authorities arrested a Mexican man and seized 20 bundles of cocaine at Brownsville's Veterans International Bridge last week. The bundles, which weighed about 46 pounds, were hidden in a 2005 International truck with a flatbed trailer. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers say they found the drugs after the truck was [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) - The city of Brownsville invites residents to an upcoming housing master plan community open house to voice their opinions on future housing plans. To spread the word about the event, City of Brownsville Planning and Redevelopment Department Director Daniel Leal stopped by the news studio on Monday morning. Leal told anchor Tawny [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Brownsville Police Department is searching for a missing man with dementia last seen Friday morning. Mario Alberto Soto, 76, was last seen at about 9 a.m. at his home located on the 1800 block of Palm Blvd. His family told police that Soto is deaf, nonverbal and has dementia. He [...]

The number of immigrant detainees participating in a hunger strike at the El Valle Detention Facility in South Texas has dropped, Border Report has learned.

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Brownsville Independent School District announced Friday that Peña Elementary students are being relocated to Garcia Middle School due to smoke from a nearby brush fire. The district said all students and staff are safe and are being relocated to the nearby school as a precaution. Parents can pick up their [...]

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) —Attorney General Ken Paxton is the latest candidate to visit the Valley as we head towards Election Day. The Senate candidate held a get-out-the-vote event at Palenque Grill in Brownsville Thursday morning. Fewer than a hundred people were in attendance, but they’re the hardcore Paxton supporters that he'll need to turn out [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The city of Brownsville teamed up with the Greater Brownsville Economic Development Corporation for its "Careers and Coffee Job Expo" on Thursday. The free event took place at the Brownsville Events Center, where hundreds of job seekers attended in-person interviews and received networking opportunities, resume assistance, and free professional headshots. Priscilla [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Up-and-coming boxers from the Rio Grande Valley are preparing for a Halloween-themed event called Next Generation X: Fright or Fight. The event will feature a lineup of boxers, including Oscar Drago Ruvalcaba and Tony "The Tank" Martinez. Oscar and Tony visited the NBC23 studio ahead of the boxing event, inviting the [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — It's the final week of the regular season for high school volleyball before the playoffs get started. District races are coming down to the wire, but a few gold balls are still up in the air, including the Sharyland matchup as the Lady Rattlers take on the Lady Diamondbacks. Sharyland vs. [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The student accused of bringing a gun to Brownsville Early College High School last week is also accused of bringing the weapon to the nearby Texas Southmost College Rec Center the same day, according to a criminal complaint obtained by ValleyCentral. Records show Luis Diaz Jr., 17, was arrested on charges [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Catholic Diocese of Brownsville launched an election resources section on its website on Monday. The cdob.org/elections webpage is "not an endorsement of any political party", but rather, the website states, a list of Catholic election resources and a 22-minute video of Bishop Daniel Flores' Sunday homily in which he encouraged [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) - The city of Brownsville is teaming up with the Greater Brownsville Economic Development Corporation to host the 2026 Annual Careers and Coffee Job Expo. The event will feature more than 10,000 job opportunities from SpaceX to Spectrum ready to perform on-site interviews. There will also be opportunities for networking, resume assistance, and free [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The city of Brownsville is inviting the community to a meeting to learn more about its newly approved drainage utility system. Earlier this month, the Brownsville City Commission voted to establish a city utility system. City leaders voted in favor of a city drainage utility system to reduce flooding and improve [...]

EDITOR’S NOTE — This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org. BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Family, friends and community members gathered in Brownsville on Friday to [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A ceremony honoring the life of actor and advocate RJ Mitte will be held Friday morning in Brownsville. The ceremony begins at 10 a.m. A livestream of the event will be available in the video player above. The event is taking place at The Mitte Arts and Cultural Center at 660 [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A drug search warrant in Brownsville led to the arrest of a 52-year-old man on Thursday, according to the Cameron County Sheriff's Office. Gerardo Sandoval Martinez was arrested at his home located in the 2100 block of Autumn Sage Street, after the Cameron County Sheriff's Office Special Investigations Unit seized more than [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A student is in custody after allegedly bringing a gun to Brownsville Early College High School, the district announced Wednesday afternoon. The district said the campus was immediately placed on lockdown as a safety precaution. The Brownsville Police Department is investigating the incident. READ ALSO: Driver charged with intoxication manslaughter after [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Brownsville police arrested a driver following a fatal crash on Tuesday night. Dania Martinez, 26, is facing charges of intoxication manslaughter with a vehicle, a second-degree felony, and intoxication assault with a vehicle causing serious bodily injury, a third-degree felony. Police say they responded at 9:10 p.m. to the 2300 block [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A man who was found after being reported missing last week in Brownsville has been reported missing for a second time. Mario Alberto Soto, 76, was last seen at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday at his home, located at the 1800 block of Palm Blvd. in Brownsville, according to police. Soto’s family shared [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) -- The Brownsville City Commission is taking action to establish its own city drainage utility system to prevent flooding in the area. Commissioners voted in favor of establishing a city drainage utility system during a special meeting held on Oct. 7. "While they have approved the utility itself, we need to work [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A ceremony celebrating the life of beloved late actor RJ Mitte will be held Friday. The event will take place at The Mitte: Arts and Cultural Center, 660 Ringgold St., Brownsville. RELATED: Brownsville residents mourn the loss of actor R.J. Mitte "On behalf of Dyna Mitte, all are invited to come celebrate [...]

EDITOR’S NOTE — This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org. BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Rio Grande Valley and the entertainment world are mourning [...]