Search for Matthew Edgar Continues as Jury Sentences Him in Murder Case
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A Texas jury has sentenced Matthew Edgar, a twenty-five-year-old accused of killing Livye Lewis, his 19-year-old girlfriend. Edgar has been a fugitive from justice since January when he skipped out on his murder trial. Lewis’s mother told reporters that Edgar might be able to hide from the law, but “[he] can’t hide from the Lord.”
Despite Edgar’s disappearance, the jury in his case has handed down its ruling, finding him guilty of murder and sentencing him to 99 years in prison. Authorities say Edgar took her life on October 31, 2020, in Hemphill, Texas, near the Louisiana border. Lewis was found dead in a vehicle near Market Road No. 83, having suffered blunt force injuries.
Some commentators have described Edgar’s case as “open and shut.” Authorities found him covered in blood and lying in the fetal position near the vehicle where Lewis was found dead. While being transported by ambulance, authorities say Edgar confided in them that the last thing he remembered was drinking on his porch. When they told him that Lewis was dead, he reportedly broke out into sobs.
Witnesses from the day of her death say Lewis went with Edgar to a Halloween party. Edgar reportedly became irate when he saw Lewis speaking to another man, and the two got into an argument outside. Lewis left the party in a separate vehicle, and Edgar followed in his own car.
Matthew Edgar was charged with murder in November 2020 and was held until he posted $50,000 in bail. He has been a fugitive from justice since he missed the start of his murder trial in January. The authorities say he could be “anywhere,” and have reportedly heard of eyewitnesses identifying him as far away as Nevada.
“The pain of losing her, it’s not ever going to change,” says Lewis’s mother, Darci Bass. “I just want to start healing, you know. I mean, I am never going to walk the same. It’s like I’ve lost a limb, all of my limbs, and I’m learning to crawl again.”
Sabine County Sheriff Thomas Maddox told reporters that his officers are doing “everything we possibly can” to track down Edgar. He might be a flight risk, and anyone with information regarding his whereabouts is encouraged to reach out to the Sabine County Sheriff’s Office at 409-787-2266 or to call 911 and inform a dispatcher.