HOUSTON – A man arrested last year for moving into a southeast Houston home that was the scene of a homicide and claiming to have a lease agreement is the same man connected to another high-profile crime scene — the Heights home where Lee Gilley allegedly strangled his pregnant wife, Christa Bauer, KPRC 2 News has confirmed through records and police.
A notice posted in the window of the Gilley home on Allston Street lists Matthew Jackson and a company called Save A Life Homes LLC as claiming ownership of the more-than-$1 million property.
Houston police responded to the home last week after Christa’s family reported that someone had taken possession of the property, changed the locks and installed cameras.
Officers spoke to a man through a doorbell camera who said he owned the home and would go to court to prove it, according to a police spokesperson.
In court, Christa’s father, Chris Bauer, called the situation “shocking,” saying no one else should be there.
Jackson has been here before
Last May, Houston homicide investigators searched a home on Edgebrook Drive in southeast Houston and found a missing man’s remains wrapped in plastic.
About two weeks after KPRC 2 News aired live coverage of the search warrant being executed, a tenant returned to the home on May 31 and called Houston police after finding that Jackson had moved in and that some of her belongings were missing.
MORE ON THAT INCIDENT: Decomposing body found in home during search for missing man in Edgebrook area
Officers said he had fraudulent papers referencing Save A Life Homes LLC. Jackson allegedly told police he had seen the house on the news and claimed to have a lease agreement.
He was arrested on a trespassing charge, court records show, but the case was later dismissed after Jackson completed 16 hours of community service and a decision-making course.
Now, the same pattern appears to be repeating — this time at a much higher-profile address.
The timeline raises questions
On May 6, the Harris County District Attorney’s Office executed a search warrant at the Gilley home on Allston Street, and KPRC 2 News was the first crew live on the scene as investigators worked the case.
Two days later, on May 8, property records show a deed was signed transferring the home to Jackson and Save A Life Homes LLC. However, neither Gilley nor Bauer, who remain the legal owners of the home, appear to have signed the document.
Attorney Lori Hood is not connected to the case but has handled at least seven fraudulent deed transfer cases in the past year. She said the paperwork posted in the window is not legitimate.
“It’s something somebody typed up and put in the window to scare people off — to scare the real owners off,” Hood said.
Hood said it appears Jackson filed an affidavit of adverse possession and then a warranty deed within days of each other — a timeline that would make both documents legally invalid under Texas law.
“Adverse possession in Texas takes longer than two days,” Hood said. “And if you look at the affidavit of possession, it doesn’t even state how long they’ve been in possession of the property. We know this family lived there, and Mr. Gilley lived there until he went to Italy on or around May 1, so it hasn’t been vacant that long.”
The suspected end game: Money
Hood said the scheme follows a recognizable pattern: targeting homes left temporarily vacant by families in crisis.
“The pattern mirrors what we see a lot of times with what I’ll call these people who take advantage of those experiencing life chaos,” Hood said. “They’re nothing short of criminals. They’re taking advantage of a lack of attention to a piece of property by families — whether it’s an elderly person, a poor person or, in this case, someone who’s had a horrible event happen to their family.”
The financial motive, Hood said, is straightforward.
“The long-run game is to get them out. You have to file a lawsuit, and a lot of times they demand money in order to leave the house,” she said. “For them, it doesn’t cost anything but a filing fee — about $20 for a warranty deed — and the cost of changing the locks. All of a sudden, they’re in the catbird seat.”
And even when a deed is clearly fraudulent, as Hood believes this one is, she said the real owners face a costly legal battle to get it removed.
“In order to clean up title, you have to file a lawsuit to get that piece of paper removed, and it’s very expensive,” Hood said. “They’ve taken these houses hostage — blackmail, whatever you want to call it.”
KPRC 2 News has attempted to track down the notary whose stamp appears on the May 8 deed, without success.
Where things stand now
Jackson is currently out on bond in connection with a separate April 2026 trespassing case at an apartment complex in southeast Houston.
When reached by phone, Jackson’s defense attorney in that misdemeanor case said he did not have information about Jackson’s latest activities involving the Gilley home.
Jackson is not facing any charges connected to the Gilley property, though records show he has been involved in civil disputes at both the state and federal levels involving other properties.
KPRC 2 News has attempted to reach Jackson for comment by email, phone and at an address listed in court records. No one answered the door.
The ownership dispute is unfolding as Gilley remains in custody in Italy. Authorities say he cut off his ankle monitor while out on bond and fled last month, just weeks before his capital murder trial was scheduled to begin.
A new trial date has not been set. However, attorneys involved in the criminal case confirmed that the U.S. Department of Justice has submitted a formal extradition request to the Italian government.