A 21-year-old Port Arthur man is facing a murder charge after Port Neches police say a bizarre string of break-ins along Ridgewood Drive ended with a 68-year-old man run over and killed at a storage facility on Sunday. Dekovin Flanagan Jr. was booked into the Jefferson County Correctional Facility on suspicion of killing Frank Cameron Imhoff, a Nederland man who police say was working near his storage unit when his truck and trailer were allegedly stolen.
According to KFOX, the chaos began when Flanagan allegedly stole a drink from a Neches Express store and then ran from the store toward the Ridgewood Apartments, where dispatchers reported he broke windows from inside a unit he had entered without permission — naked, police say. As reported by Port Arthur News, officers were dispatched to that call at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, followed by a second call at 11:48 a.m. after Flanagan allegedly smashed glass panels in the front doors of the Matterhorn Apartments office nearby.
It wasn't until roughly 2 p.m. that Port Neches police found Imhoff dead at Central Maxi-Storage, located in the drive between two rows of storage buildings near his own unit, per the same account from Port Arthur News. Police say Imhoff had attempted to stop Flanagan as he drove away in Imhoff's stolen truck and trailer, and that Flanagan ran over and killed him in the process.
Truck Abandoned, Suspect Cornered in a Closet
Police say Flanagan tried to crash through a fence at the storage complex before abandoning the stolen truck and trailer near the damaged fencing on the opposite side of the property. He then fled on foot, according to KFOX's reporting. Investigators say surveillance video and other evidence collected from Central Maxi-Storage and the Matterhorn Apartments helped identify Flanagan as the suspect in Imhoff's death.
Port Neches police officers ultimately found Flanagan hiding inside a closet with the help of K-9 Ruger, a certified department tracking dog that regularly takes part in regional public safety outreach events alongside the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and Texas DPS. Officers suspected Flanagan was intoxicated on an unknown substance based on his behavior and demeanor at the time of his arrest.
Medical Hold Delayed the Jail Booking
Flanagan was taken to a hospital for medical clearance rather than jailed immediately. He was discharged Monday afternoon following the drug-intoxication evaluation and was transferred directly to the Jefferson County Correctional Facility, where he was booked on a murder charge, the outlet reported. A magistrate is expected to arraign Flanagan and set bail, per the police report.
The investigation into Imhoff's death remains ongoing, and it is not yet clear what specific charges beyond murder, if any, Flanagan could face. Under Texas Penal Code Section 19.02, murder is a first-degree felony carrying a punishment range of 5 to 99 years or life in prison, along with a fine of up to $10,000, according to the Barbieri Law Firm. Because Imhoff was killed during an alleged vehicle theft, prosecutors could also lean on the state's felony murder doctrine under Section 19.02(b)(3), which allows a murder charge when a death results from an act clearly dangerous to human life committed during a separate felony — without requiring proof that the defendant intended to kill anyone, per Versus Texas.
A Rare Spasm of Violence for a Quiet City
The investigation was directed by Port Neches Police Chief Cheri' Griffith, who made regional history in November 2022 as the first female police chief of a municipal department in Southeast Texas. Port Neches itself is a small, close-knit city of about 13,664 residents with a median household income of $81,637 and a homeownership rate above 70 percent, according to Census Bureau data compiled by Census Reporter. Municipal reports note the local police department has long relied on community policing to keep one of the lowest crime rates in Southeast Texas, making Sunday's spree — three disturbance calls within a few hours along a single stretch of Ridgewood Drive — a striking break from the norm.
Flanagan's booking also arrives as Jefferson County's jail system faces its own strain. In May, Jefferson County Sheriff Zena Stephens warned commissioners that the Jefferson County Correctional Facility in Beaumont was nearing full capacity and entering what she called crisis mode, citing a rise in violent offenders and changes tied to state bail reform laws, according to 12News. The facility, located at 5030 Highway 69 South in Beaumont, is certified by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards and can hold more than 1,000 inmates.
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