UPDATE: Mauriceville man charged with murder after victim struck with vehicle

Published 1:45 pm Monday, October 31, 2022

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An Orange County man is in jail, charged with murder after a noise complaint led to a deadly auto-pedestrian strike, authorities say.

Beaumont Police responded to 3875 N. Major Drive at 2:32 a.m. Sunday after a victim said he had been struck by a vehicle.

Responding officers located the man, later identified as 38-year-old Christopher Matthews, near the back of the apartment complex suffering from severe injuries. He was taken to a local hospital and listed in critical condition.

Preliminary investigation revealed Matthews called police at 2:28 a.m. in reference to a noise complaint coming from a residence in the 3900 block of Cheryl Street, behind the apartment complex.

Prior to officers arriving, a disturbance between the victim and several people from the residence on Cheryl Street occurred.

During the disturbance, Max Lee Keath, a 45-year-old Mauriceville resident, left the residence in his vehicle, drove to the apartment complex and ran over the victim in the parking lot, then fled the scene, according to police.

Detectives responded and interviewed multiple witnesses, then located and interviewed Keath.

Following the interview, Keath was arrested for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

On Sunday evening, Matthews of Beaumont died from his injuries and detectives upgraded the aggravated assault charge to murder.

Jail records Tuesday morning listed Keath’s bond at $1.5 million.