Eric Dawon Matthews: Murders Across Indiana and Louisiana
Overview
Eric Dawon Matthews is an American serial killer and rapist whose known crimes occurred in Indiana and Louisiana during the 1990s. Authorities connected him to the disappearances and presumed murders of two young women in Indianapolis in 1994, followed by the killings of his wife and infant stepson in Louisiana in May 1998. Matthews was also accused of committing two violent sexual assaults while fleeing from police with his wife’s children.
Matthews was born on May 3, 1974, in Indianapolis, Indiana. Accounts of his early life describe a long history of behavioral problems, institutional placements and violence. As an adult, he was reportedly capable of appearing friendly and charming, but women close to him described a controlling and abusive side. His victims were generally people he knew personally, including a coworker, intimate partners and a small child who depended on him for protection.
The Disappearance of Kenya L. Willis
In June 1994, Matthews worked at a pancake restaurant in the Castleton area of Indianapolis with 19-year-old Kenya L. Willis. Willis disappeared during that period and was never found. Her disappearance did not initially produce enough evidence to charge Matthews or establish precisely what had happened to her.
After Matthews was arrested in 1998, investigators said he confessed to killing Willis. Because her remains were never recovered, the exact date, location and manner of her death have not been conclusively established. Reports commonly place her disappearance in June 1994, but an exact verified death date is unavailable.
The Presumed Murder of Christina Darnell
Later in 1994, Matthews was living in Indianapolis with his 18-year-old girlfriend, Christina Darnell. The couple had a young daughter. Matthews was reportedly physically abusive toward Darnell, and the violence became serious enough that she sent their daughter to live with relatives in Madison, Alabama. Darnell remained with Matthews despite her family’s concerns.
Darnell normally telephoned her mother and daughter every day. Those calls abruptly stopped after August 29, 1994, the date Matthews admitted that he and Darnell had argued. When questioned, he claimed she had taken approximately $700 and left the apartment voluntarily. Her mother reported her missing on September 1 after receiving no communication from her for three days.
Matthews was not arrested at the time because investigators had no body and little physical evidence. Following his 1998 capture, however, authorities reported that he confessed to killing Darnell and disposing of her body in a trash container. He was unable or unwilling to provide information that led police to her remains. August 29, 1994, is generally treated as the presumed date of her death, although no body has been recovered and her death date has not been medically confirmed.
Marriage to Lashann Sylve
Matthews eventually left Indiana and moved to Louisiana. In 1997, he became involved with Lashann Sylve, a young mother with two children, Rosalyn and James. Matthews and Lashann married in November 1997 and lived in a mobile home near Hammond, Louisiana.
On May 18, 1998, members of Lashann’s family went to the home and found her dead. Her hands and feet had been tied with neckties, a sock had been forced into her mouth and there were indications that she had been choked or strangled. Matthews and both children were missing from the residence, immediately making him the principal suspect.
Matthews fled Louisiana with four-year-old Rosalyn and 17-month-old James. Because he had taken the children across state lines while wanted in connection with Lashann’s death, the investigation expanded into a multistate search involving local law enforcement and the FBI.
The Murder of James Sylve
While fleeing with the children, Matthews killed his infant stepson, James Sylve. Investigators said Matthews later admitted that he became enraged with the child and strangled him. He placed James’s body inside a gym bag, wrapped or concealed the remains and discarded the bag in a trash container behind a church in Kenner, Louisiana.
James was killed during the period immediately following his mother’s murder on May 18, 1998. His body was recovered on May 20, 1998. Although the recovery date is firmly documented, reports indicate that the child was killed earlier while Matthews was fleeing Louisiana.
Rosalyn remained alive and was still with Matthews when police captured him. Her survival provided investigators with one small measure of relief amid the discovery that her mother and younger brother had both been murdered.
Sexual Assaults During the Manhunt
Matthews continued committing violent crimes while traveling between Louisiana, Indiana and Illinois. On May 19, 1998, he reportedly rented a room at the Dollar Inn in the Castleton area of Indianapolis. He arranged for a 36-year-old female entertainer to come to the motel. Once she was inside the room, he attacked and raped her before choking her until she lost consciousness.
The woman survived. When she regained consciousness, Matthews had fled. The assault demonstrated that he remained extremely dangerous and was willing to use strangulation against women even as law enforcement agencies were actively searching for him.
Matthews was also connected to the abduction and rape of a teenage girl near Tickfaw, Louisiana. He allegedly forced the girl into his vehicle, drove her to an isolated area and sexually assaulted her. He then abandoned her in a field, where she faced the possibility of dying from exposure or dehydration. She was located alive.
Known and Presumed Victims
- Kenya L. Willis, 19 — Disappeared in June 1994 from the Castleton area of Indianapolis, Indiana. Matthews reportedly confessed in 1998 to killing her. Her remains have never been recovered, and no exact death date or disposal location has been conclusively verified.
- Christina Darnell, 18 — Last known to be alive around August 29, 1994, in Indianapolis, Indiana. Matthews claimed she left following an argument but later reportedly confessed to killing her and placing her body in a trash container. Her remains have never been located, so August 29 is considered a presumed rather than medically confirmed death date.
- Lashann Sylve Matthews, 20 — Killed on or shortly before May 18, 1998, inside the family’s mobile home near Hammond, Louisiana. Relatives found her bound and gagged, with evidence that she had been choked or strangled.
- James Sylve, 17 months — Strangled while Matthews fled Louisiana after Lashann’s murder. Matthews discarded the child’s body in a trash container behind a church in Kenner, Louisiana. James was killed between May 18 and May 20, 1998, and his body was recovered on May 20.
Capture and Confessions
On May 20, 1998, police officers located Matthews’s black Dodge automobile in Schiller Park, Illinois, near O’Hare International Airport. Officers arrested him and found Rosalyn alive inside the vehicle. James was not present.
Matthews initially claimed he had left James at a New Orleans hospital because the child had become sick. Investigators quickly determined that his explanation was false. Under continued questioning, Matthews admitted that James was dead and directed authorities toward the area where the child’s body had been discarded.
After confessing to the Louisiana killings, Matthews reportedly admitted responsibility for the deaths of Kenya Willis and Christina Darnell in Indianapolis. His statements transformed two missing-person investigations into presumed homicide cases. However, the absence of the women’s bodies and the lack of recoverable physical evidence made prosecution in Indiana difficult.
Legal Proceedings and Sentence
Louisiana authorities concentrated on prosecuting Matthews for the murders of Lashann and James because the victims’ bodies, crime scenes and other physical evidence were available. Prosecutors initially had the option of pursuing the death penalty.
The case was delayed for years by legal disputes, competency examinations and attempts by the defense to prevent Matthews’s confessions from being presented in court. His attorneys argued that his statements had been obtained improperly, but a judge ruled that the confessions could be used.
In 2006, Matthews entered guilty pleas to two counts of second-degree murder for killing Lashann and James. In exchange, prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty. Matthews received life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
Legacy of the Case
Eric Dawon Matthews is generally classified as a serial killer with four known or presumed victims. Two murders were supported by recovered bodies and physical evidence, while the other two were based largely on Matthews’s reported confessions and the unexplained disappearances of the women.
The cases of Kenya Willis and Christina Darnell remain especially painful because their remains have never been recovered. Their families were denied the certainty of a confirmed burial location, and investigators were unable to reconstruct the complete circumstances of their deaths. The lack of verified death dates is a direct consequence of the concealment of their bodies and the years that passed before Matthews confessed.
Matthews’s crimes crossed state lines and included domestic violence, murder, child abduction, rape and attempted strangulation. His arrest ended a violent period that had begun at least four years earlier, but it did not answer every question. His guilty pleas ensured that he would spend the remainder of his life in prison, while the unresolved locations of two victims continue to leave part of the case unfinished.
