A Raymondville man is charged with abandonment on a corpse that was discovered in central Missouri, authorities said.
According to both the Callaway County Sheriff’s Office and the Audrain County Sheriff’s Office, 39-year-old Timothy Sullins was charged with the felony offense of abandonment of a corpse on March 30.
Sullins was arrested April 1 by the Texas County Sheriff’s Office and transported to the Texas County Jail. He is free on a $20,000 bond posted April 4.
Authorities said the charge was filed after “an extensive investigation” conducted by multiple law enforcement agencies.
The charge is related to the disappearance, death and discovery of 23-year-old Matthew Beauchamp’s remains.
An investigation into Beauchamp’s disappearance was opened nearly a year ago on April 16, 2019. Beauchamp had not been in contact with his family or heard from since September 2018.
Both sheriff’s departments generated more than 60 follow-up reports during the investigation.
Law enforcement received information Dec. 20, 2019, that Beauchamp’s remains were located near County Road 470 by Mokane in Callaway County. The area is near the Callaway Nuclear Power Plant.
After an “extensive search” that continued into Dec. 21, 2019, law enforcement discovered “badly decomposed human remains” west of Mokane in “a rural area along County Road 470.”
The remains were later positively identified as those of Beauchamp, according to law enforcement.
Authorities believe Beauchamp died from a drug overdose in September 2018 at a residence in the Hams Prairie area.
According to a press release, authorities believe Beauchamp, a Mexico, Mo., resident, was transported to a different location after he died.
Investigators have determined a second person was also involved in the transport and abandoning of Beauchamp’s corpse, authorities said. That suspect is deceased.
Sullins is scheduled to have a court appearance May 15.