BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — A man was arrested Thursday after authorities found the body of a woman at an empty apartment under construction.
Damion Matthews, 38, of Baton Rouge was taken into custody after an investigation that started around 8:30 a.m. on Feb. 23. Members of the fire department and deputies with the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office discovered the body of a 27-year-old woman when they arrived at the scene, according to an affidavit.
The scene was located in the 8800 block of GSRI Avenue. Matthews is accused of discarding the unidentified woman’s body, the sheriff’s office said.
The EBR Coroner’s Office did not find “any obvious signs of trauma or injury.” Investigators believe the woman had been moved to the apartment location.
Further investigation included looking at various camera footage. The first camera showed that the woman’s body was not at the scene as late as 7:30 a.m. Another camera showed a Chevrolet Malibu coming into and leaving the apartment unit parking lot between 7:47 a.m. and 8:02 a.m. Matthews was later identified as a passenger in that vehicle.
According to the affidavit, “Homicide Detectives received information that the victim has been at a local casino and was possibly seen leaving with an unknown Black male.” Camera footage backed up that claim after it showed Matthews and the woman leaving a little after 2:30 a.m.
Matthews was captured around 1 p.m. on Thursday after a traffic stop on Highland Road. He was booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison and charged with unlawful disposal of remains and obstruction of justice.
Bond has not yet been set for Matthews.