PHILADELPHIA — A tragic discovery was made in Philadelphia as the body of 29-year-old Makea Matthews was found less than a day after she had visited a local nightclub.
As the investigation continues, Matthews’ family is desperate for answers, with both the police and medical examiner’s office diligently working to uncover the truth behind her death.
The family of Matthews has been informed that she died from hypothermia, yet they remain puzzled about how she ended up over a mile from the nightclub, found beneath an Interstate 95 overpass on the 2000 block of Richmond Street.
Recounting the moment she learned of her sister’s death, Bayyinah Matthews expressed her disbelief, saying, “Kea was found frozen dead outside, and I’m like, ‘Huh?’ I start screaming.”
On the night of Friday, January 23, Matthews went out with two friends to a nightclub on Delaware Avenue. However, she never made it back home, her family reports.
According to club security, Matthews was escorted out of the venue due to intoxication, leaving her family with more questions than answers.
The family says the friends told them they initially left with Matthews and then went back inside the club to look for something.
When they returned, Matthews was reportedly gone.
“Makea would have never been missing if somebody would have stayed with her. She would be alive, right,” Bayyinah Matthews said.
The following day, Matthews’ girlfriend reported her missing at approximately 4:25 p.m.
About 20 minutes later, police say an officer responded to the area for a call and located Matthews’ frozen body underneath the highway. That evening, the city was under a Code Blue with below-freezing temperatures.
“They labeled it as hypothermia,” Matthews said. “She has blunt force trauma to her left side of her face and bruises all over her body.”
Desperate for answers, Bayyinah Matthews posted videos to TikTok that have gained more than one million views.
“I went to social media cause I’m like somebody gotta hear this, somebody gotta know about this, somebody gotta get the truth,” she said.
The family says they are also trying to retrace Matthews’ steps on their own in an effort to piece together what happened.
“I’m not stopping until I get my closure about my sister. I need closure,” Matthews said.
Police say Matthews’ death remains under investigation by the Philadelphia Police Department and the Medical Examiner’s Office. Attempts to reach the friends Matthews was last seen with have not yet been returned.
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