The Harris County Sheriff’s Office is mourning the death of Deputy Alexander Gwosdz, who died Thursday, April 22 from COVID-19 complications.

“We are devastated and saddened by another loss of life and reminded again of the dangers of this terrible virus,” Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said via Twitter.

Deputy Gwosdz – pronounced Guush – (32) was a nine-year HCSO veteran. He joined the agency in 2012 as a detention officer responsible for the custody and care of those in the largest jail in Texas. Since graduating from the Sheriff’s Office Basic Peace Officer Course in 2014, he has served as a patrol deputy in northwest Harris County.

Deputy Gwosdz’s father, Chris Gwosdz, retired from the Sheriff’s Office in 2020 after 34 years of service.

He is the fourth HCSO deputy and the fifth employee agency-wide to die after contracting the virus. The others are:

• Raymond Scholwinski, 70, who died May 6, 2020.
• Deputy Juan Menchaca, 70, who died June 13, 2020.
• Deputy Johnny Tunches, 56, who died Nov. 2, 2020.
• Detention Officer Robert Perez, 54, who died Feb. 2, 2021.

“Deputy Gwosdz loved his job. He had a servant’s heart. He came from a law enforcement family; his father is a retired Sheriff’s Office deputy and our brother in blue. His whole life was ahead of him,” Gonzalez said.