Christopher Jeffries, a 47-year-old former police officer from Port Arthur, Texas, was found dead in his home on February 21, 2016. Jeffries, who was last seen on February 19, 2016, was discovered with multiple gunshot wounds in a back room of his residence. The initial investigation revealed that he had been shot to death, and his body was wrapped in bed sheets and hidden in a bedroom.
The house showed signs of a struggle, with bullet holes and blood spatter found in the kitchen, along with a bloody knife. The autopsy report confirmed that Jeffries died from gunshot wounds to the neck, torso, and face.
The primary suspect in the case was Ethel Marie Eulian, Jeffries' 47-year-old fiancée, who was living with him at the time of his death. Eulian was arrested and charged with Jeffries' murder after police received a tip and forcibly entered the home to find his body. Eulian had an extensive criminal record, and her arrest brought some relief to the community and the officers who knew Jeffries. During the investigation, it was revealed that a 4-year-old child was present in the home at the time of the incident, although the child's relation to Eulian or Jeffries was not disclosed.
Eulian was indicted on a murder charge and later pleaded guilty to the crime. She admitted to shooting Jeffries five times in their kitchen before wrapping his body in bed sheets and hiding it in the bedroom. The surveillance footage from their home showed Jeffries entering the house with Eulian and a 3-year-old child on February 19, 2016. Eulian and the child were seen leaving the house later that evening without Jeffries. The surveillance system was disabled early the next morning, and Eulian was found purchasing cleaning supplies from Walmart on February 21, 2016.
Eulian was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the murder of Christopher Jeffries. The case was described as a tragic end to a domestic dispute, and the community was left in shock over the loss of a former police officer who had served the Port Arthur Police Department for six years before resigning in the late 1990s. Jeffries' death marked the first homicide in Port Arthur in 2016, and the investigation and subsequent trial brought some closure to the community and Jeffries' family.
