BEAUMONT, Texas — Beaumont Police are investigating after a body was found Monday morning in the north end of Beaumont.
Beaumont Police say they have made an arrest in connection with the homicide victim's car. Police records confirm Raymond Holmes, 31, is held on $750,000 bond for unauthorized use a motor vehicle. The car Holmes allegedly stole was owned by Riley Lee Francis.
Police believe that Francis and Holmes knew each other. The two were seen at a local nightclub over the weekend, according to a Beaumont Police news release.
Beaumont Police were looking to speak to Melanie Carry, 33, who may be the last person to have seen Francis alive. In a Facebook post, police say they located Carry and have spoken to her.
Investigators found Francis' vehicle in the 4100 block of Maida at Northridge Manor.
Police dispatch received a call around 7:30 a.m. Monday, Dec. 23 from a person who told a dispatcher they found a body in a ditch in the 3000 block of Roland Road shortly after sunrise.
Beaumont EMS responded and pronounced the victim dead at the scene. Beaumont's Crime Unit detectives are investigating the case as a possible homicide, Officer Haley Morrow said.
Francis has been identified as a 60-year-old disabled Beaumont man.
The investigation is still ongoing and the official cause of death has not been determined, Morrow said. Anyone with information about this case is asked to call Beaumont Police at (409) 832-1234 or Crime Stoppers at 833-TIPS (8477).
Beaumont Police full release 12/24/2019..
In the early morning hours of December 24, 2019, BPD Detectives received information from witnesses who advised that they had located the person who they observed using Reily Frances’ vehicle (which had been recovered on the evening of December 23, in the 4000 block of Maida). Detectives arrived to speak with the possible suspect and through investigation they located evidence linking the suspect to Riely and his vehicle. The suspect was identified as Raymond Wayne Holmes, a 51 year old Beaumont man (pictured below). Holmes spoke with Detectives then was placed under arrest for Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle. It is believed that Reily Frances and Holmes knew each other and were seen at a local nightclub over the weekend.
The investigation into the death of Reily Frances is still on-going. Detectives are awaiting complete autopsy results and ask anyone with information to please contact the Beaumont Police Department at 409-832-1234.
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