True Crime Chronicles: "Boyfriend" who murdered Poteau woman in 2007 in Franklin County avoided death with plea

 Christopher Gene Brewer

On June 6, 2007, Celesta Shea Ann McBride, a 30-year-old mother of five from Poteau, drowned in the Mulberry River in Franklin County. Her boyfriend, Christopher Gene Brewer, was convicted in connection with her death, marking a somber chapter in the region’s history of homicide. cases

Brewer, then 26, initially faced a first-degree murder charge but pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on November 8, 2007, receiving a 20-year sentence with 157 days’ credit for time served in Franklin County jail.

According to court records, McBride’s body was found inside Brewer’s Jeep Cherokee, which was stuck in the Mulberry River.

Brewer claimed McBride had attempted to drown herself, and he tried to revive her before leaving to seek help.

However, an affidavit by Franklin County Sheriff’s investigator Steve Clemmons revealed that Brewer confessed to a cellmate that he killed McBride, though specific details of the crime, such as the exact sequence of events or motive, remain limited in public records.

With additional convictions for kidnapping, aggravated assault, battery, and possession of prohibited articles, among others, the years in prison piled on. As of May 2025, his projected parole eligible date is May 25, 2075, making his cumulative sentence one of the longest in the Arkansas Department of Corrections for a non-death penalty case.

His prison record includes numerous disciplinary violations, such as threats, battery, and possession of contraband, reflecting ongoing behavioral issues.

McBride, a factory worker, left behind five childrenas well as her mother, stepfather, and siblings.

Her funeral was held on June 9, 2007, at Evans Chapel of Memories in Poteau, officiated by Rev. Jimmy D. Cook.

She was laid to rest at Oakland Cemetery in Poteau, Le Flore County, Oklahoma.

The lack of detailed public information about the specifics of McBride’s death, such as the precise circumstances leading to her drowning, underscores the challenges in revisiting cases from nearly two decades ago.

This tragedy continues to resonate as a reminder of the devastating impact of violent crime on families and communities.