IT'S DUMB TO BE DRIVING DRUNK WITH A BODY IN THE TRUNK

Houston police search home of woman found dead inside trunk of vehicle in Beaumont

 

By Tierra Smith and Briana Zamora-Nipper

 

Click2Houston

November 29, 2020

 

HOUSTON – The body of a Houston woman was found in the trunk of a car involved in a high-speed chase that ended in downtown Beaumont Saturday morning, according to a release from the Texas Department of Public Safety.

DPS officials identified the driver as Victor Charles Campbell, a 35-year-old man from Fresno.

Officials said the car chase began in Chambers County. Around 8 a.m., the department received a call regarding a reckless driver, who was driving a white car on Interstate 10 in Beaumont. A DPS Trooper saw a white Honda car speeding down I-10 and attempted to pull it over near FM 365.

Campbell pulled to the right as if to stop, but immediately sped off, officials said.

As the driver approached Milam Street in Beaumont, he struck a concrete barrier and lost control of the vehicle, which came to a rest near mile marker 855, according to officials.

After the collision, Troopers secured the crash scene and removed Campbell from the vehicle. DPS investigators searched the Honda, which is standard procedure after a car crash. Troopers found the body of a woman in the trunk, according to the release.

The woman was later identified as 28-year-old Briana Teirra Johnson of Houston.

An autopsy was ordered and her death is now being investigated by the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Ranger Division in cooperation with the Houston Police Department’s Homicide Division, the Beaumont Police Department, and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.

Sunday morning, Houston police were searching a Houston home located in the 4100 block of Maggie St. Police said evidence found inside the car in Beaumont led them to the residence.

“We found items on scene that could link the persons involved back to this address,” HPD Detective Cory Arrington said.

Campbell was transported to the Jefferson County jail following his release from the hospital, where he was initially taken for treatment after the crash. He faces charges for felony evading arrest, driving while intoxicated, tampering with evidence, and abuse of a corpse, investigators said in a release. Additional felony charges are pending as this investigation continues.