24-year-old woman found beaten, shot to death on dirt road, TX cops say. Man charged

A month after a 24-year-old woman was discovered dead in a pool of blood on a Texas road, a man has been charged in her killing, authorities say.

Quan Flowers, who is also tied to two assault cases and a missing person investigation, is now charged with murder in the May 3 death of Megan Rouse, according to the Houston Police Department. Rouse is believed to have been fatally shot only about an hour before an officer found her body on a dimly lit dirt road.

Police said Rouse, who was shot in the head and chest area, had also been “severely beaten.” Shell casings were discovered near her body that helped connect Flowers to other unsolved assaults, according to court documents.

“I always describe her as a butterfly,” Donna Shaw, Rouse’s mother, told KRIV.

After officers identified Rouse as the victim, they learned she had been communicating with a friend on a Facebook audio call at 8:47 p.m. that night, police said. She was with an unknown man while on the call, according to police.

It was just an hour and 27 minutes later when Rouse’s body was discovered, according to police.

Tied to other cases

The shell casings collected at the scene matched those of two aggravated assault cases from earlier in the year, police said. Both of the cases occurred in the same area as Rouse’s killing, according to the court documents.

In one of those incidents, a man driving a Chevy Malibu shot another man in the face and arm on March 29, police said. The vehicle appeared to match a dark-colored car seen in surveillance footage May 3 driving on the road where Rouse’s body was found.

A second shooting took place on April 4 appearing to target a house, police said, with shell casings again matching the ones found near Rouse.

The investigation led authorities to Flowers, who police said is also a person of interest in the disappearance of 29-year-old Kalie Goodwin. She was reported missing in April after her mother heard her in a phone call “actively getting beat up,” according to police.

“Momma my face is deformed,” Goodwin said on the call with her mom, police said. She has not been found.

Flowers was known to be with Goodwin before she disappeared, court documents show. He reportedly told police “the last time I saw her she was in one piece.”

The home where Flowers resides is less than a two-minute drive from where Rouse’s body was found.

Arrested in Rouse’s killing

Officers examined his movements using Google Maps and said they are consistent with the movements of the dark-colored vehicle shown in the surveillance video.

Questioned about Rouse’s death, Flowers said he was in the area of the crime driving his girlfriend’s Chevy Malibu, but he denied any involvement in the shooting, police said.

While Flowers was charged with murder in Rouse’s killing, he has not been charged in the other cases.

A motive for the killing is unclear, but police found evidence Flowers had texted his girlfriend on the day of Rouse’s death, telling her to send money to Rouse’s Cash App account, court documents show.

He denied having any kind of relationship with Rouse, police said.

According to an obituary, Rouse was “known for her unparalleled compassion and unwavering kindness.”

“Her heart was as pure as her soul, and she never hesitated to lend a helping hand to those in need,” the obituary said. “Her free spirit danced through life with grace and poise, spreading joy and warmth wherever she went.”

This story was originally published June 4, 2024 at 9:37 AM with the headline "24-year-old woman found beaten, shot to death on dirt road, TX cops say. Man charged."