Bond set at $150K for woman accused in weekend murder

Bond was set at $150,000 for Melissa Dawn Cruz, 45, of Hattiesburg, who is accused in the second-degree murder of a Forrest County man.

She made her initial court appearance Tuesday in Forrest County Justice Court in front of Judge Gay Polk-Payton.

Cruz allegedly ran over Keith Phillips, 45, on Friday night with an unidentified vehicle on Old Highway 49 West near AV Hatten Road, Forrest County Sheriff's Department spokesman Nick Calico said.

"On July 1, we received a call of a suspicious person walking down Old Highway 49 West around 9:54 p.m.," he said. "While deputies were en route to look for the suspicious person, they received a second call in the same area of a male lying in the road bleeding."

When a deputy arrived at the scene, he saw a man who appeared to be dead. As he was notifying the sheriff's office, a second deputy was flagged down by the suspect, Calico said.

"(Cruz) stated that she had just run over somebody," he said.

Once Cruz told the deputy what had happened, Forrest County investigators were notified and a death investigation begun.

"Through the investigation it was determined the suspect intentionally ran over the white male," Calico said. "At that point, she was charged with second-degree murder/homicide."

Calico said the suspect and the victim knew each other but "we're still investigating the extent of their relationship."

The homicide, which is still under investigation, marks the first for unincorporated Forrest County in 2016.

Cruz, who told the judge she is from Washington state, said she has no family in the area, but was living in Hattiesburg because she had been stationed at Camp Shelby for the last 3½ years.

She remains in Forrest County Jail in lieu of bond.