A Texas state police dog named Bona chased a man through thick brush in Uvalde County. The chase went on for more than five miles. The man tried to hide from police. He could not outrun the dog.

State troopers say the man may be a member of MS-13. MS-13 is a violent gang. It started in Los Angeles years ago. Now it has members in El Salvador and the United States. The long chase happened on July 6, 2026. Texas troopers were helping Border Patrol search the area that day.

The Texas Department of Public Safety, or DPS, says the man is Bryan Oswaldo Bustillo Mejia. He is from El Salvador. DPS calls him an alleged MS-13 gang member. That word matters. It means troopers believe he is tied to the gang. No court has proven that yet. El Tejano uses that word because the case is still new.

Bona is a DPS K9. She works with her handler, Trooper Rabun. The two train to find people who run and hide from police. On July 6, DPS sent the team to help Border Patrol in Uvalde County. Troopers say Bustillo Mejia ran into thick brush when officers got close.

Bona picked up his scent fast. She tracked him for more than five miles across rough, hot land. That kind of distance is rare for a K9 track. Troopers say the long chase pushed both the dog and her handler hard.

DPS spokesman Lieutenant Chris Olivarez shared the news online. He wrote: "5 MILES. ONE K-9. ONE MS-13 GANG MEMBER CAPTURED." Troopers found Bustillo Mejia hiding in the brush after the long track. He did not get away.

Border Patrol agents took Bustillo Mejia into custody once troopers found him. DPS has not said what charges, if any, he may face. Cases like this often go to federal immigration court instead of a local court. El Tejano could not confirm any charges as of this report. We will update this story if that changes.

Uvalde County sits in the Texas Hill Country. It sits north of the Rio Grande Valley, inside the wider South Texas border region that DPS patrols hard. Troopers lean on K9 teams like Bona and Trooper Rabun as part of the state's border push. These dogs track scent through brush, water, and heat that would stop most people.

MS-13 is a gang that South Texas families have heard about for years. The gang has ties to smuggling and violent crime cases across the state. Because of that history, state police move fast to flag anyone they think is in the gang. That speed helps public safety. It can also mean a label sticks to a person before a judge reviews the case. That is why the word "alleged" matters in a story like this one.

DPS has not released more details about what happens next for Bustillo Mejia. Border Patrol and federal officials will likely decide what happens next. It is not yet clear if he will face criminal charges, deportation, or both. El Tejano will publish updates as new facts come out.

K9 teams like Bona and Trooper Rabun work all across South Texas. They ride in patrol trucks and wait for calls like the one on July 6. Some teams track lost hikers. Some track people who run from a traffic stop. Others help Border Patrol search miles of brush near the river. Each dog trains for years before it ever works a real case.

Readers in the Rio Grande Valley often ask why a case in Uvalde County matters here. The answer is simple. DPS moves K9 teams across South Texas as needs change. The same troopers, dogs, and border tools used in Uvalde County get used closer to home too. What happens in one South Texas county often shapes what happens in the next one.

For now, the story that stands is simple. A K9 named Bona tracked a man for five miles through the Uvalde County brush. She did not stop until she found him.