Two men are behind bars after a young woman was found dead in Coldspring, Texas earlier this week.
Deputies with the San Jacinto County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to the 100 block of Ellis Road at 11:55 a.m. on Dec. 28 in reference to a woman found dead.
The victim was identified as 18-year-old Katelynn Michelle Brandon from Onalaska.
San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said she died from several stab wounds to the back of the neck and shoulder blades. He described it as “gruesome.”
Brandon’s family members were the ones who found her body Wednesday morning in the trailer home she shared with her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Thorin Keepers, 28.
“When they didn’t hear from her after several hours, they elected to drive over there and see. And they walked in the house and found what they found,” Sheriff Capers said.
The sheriff estimated the woman had been dead for several hours before her family found her.
Thorin Keepers is charged with murder and tampering with/or fabricating physical evidence. His father, Daniel Keepers, 50, is also charged with tampering with/or fabricating physical evidence.
“We have a witness who seen them come out of the residence with Katelynn’s phone and then throw it in a location off of SH-2025 in north Cleveland,” Sheriff Capers explained.
Those familiar with the situation said the couple had a tumultuous relationship.
The two men were taken into custody at their home in the Cleveland area on Dec. 29, deputies said.
Cassandra Strong lived next door to Brandon and her boyfriend for several months. She said there were times when the elder Keepers also lived there.
She said the couple had been away from the home for several weeks, but returned on Tuesday afternoon. Brandon stopped by her home at about 4:30 p.m.
“She just said that she was back and that she didn’t say for how long that she was back, but she said she wanted to see how we were doing,” Strong said.
She did not notice anything out of the ordinary with the 18-year-old, so she was stunned when she saw the police outside the next day and learned what happened.
“You really don’t know,” Strong said. “You can know and be there for people and try to help them, but you really don’t know.”
Brandon and Strong had a typical neighborly relationship, where they helped each other where they could. Strong said she had no relationship with the younger Keepers.
“He never would even acknowledge us as we drove by,” Strong recalled. “We would try to wave and get him to say ‘hello’ and he would put his head down or turn away. Never acted like we were driving by or trying to talk to him.”
Brandon’s family did not want to speak about the case so the investigation wasn’t compromised. They did describe her as a beautiful girl who was always smiling and loved to sing and dance.
Investigators are still working to determine a motive in the killing.
