Suspect Charged in 2023 Homicide

**Montgomery County Authorities Arrest Suspect in Thanksgiving Eve Homicide**

**SPRING, Texas** – A Houston man has been arrested and charged with murder in connection with the Thanksgiving Eve homicide of 23-year-old Jesus Antonio Garcia-Soto, whose body was discovered dumped in a ditch last November.

Michael Brandon Powell, 31, was taken into custody in Houston on Wednesday, January 3rd, and subsequently charged with murder. He is currently being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $250,000 bond. Powell was apprehended on the 10200 block of the North Freeway before being transported to Montgomery County.

The investigation began early on November 22nd, 2023, Thanksgiving Eve, when Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a grisly discovery. Around 4:30 AM, Garcia-Soto’s body was found in a ditch on the 23700 block of the I-45 North feeder road, just south of the Grand Parkway in Spring.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office Homicide/Violent Crimes Unit immediately launched an intensive investigation. Detectives quickly began canvassing the area for clues and eventually located surveillance video critical to piecing together the events leading to Garcia-Soto’s death.

According to investigators, the footage reportedly captured a black Cadillac Escalade pulling over at the exact location where Garcia-Soto’s body was later found. The video allegedly shows Garcia-Soto, who was a passenger in the vehicle, being shot by the driver—identified by authorities as Powell—before his body was then dumped from the vehicle at the roadside.

Investigators were able to identify Powell and track down the black Cadillac Escalade. When law enforcement located Powell, they also reportedly recovered the weapon believed to have been used in the fatal shooting.

During questioning, Powell reportedly claimed self-defense, telling deputies that Garcia-Soto had pulled a gun on him first. Authorities suspect the incident may have stemmed from a drug deal gone wrong. Despite his claim, Powell now faces a murder charge for Garcia-Soto’s death.

The case remains under active investigation by the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.