Union Township man charged in fatal beating of Maplewood man

A Union Township man has been charged with first-degree murder in the fatal beating of a 25-year-old Maplewood man.

Yves Marcellus, 25, was arrested and charged Friday night, Acting Union County Prosecutor Grace Park said in a statement Saturday.

Marcellus is accused of murdering Matthew Murrell, whose body was found in the yard of a house on the 800 block of Salem Road just before 5 a.m. on Tuesday.

Park said an intensive joint investigation by the Union County Homicide Task Force, the Union Police Department, and the Union County Sheriff’s Office resulted in Marcellus being identified as a suspect in the case.

Marcellus was arrested at his place of employment on Route 22 in Union Friday night, Park said. She did not name the business that employs him. He is being held in Union County Jail. State Superior Court Judge Scott J. Moynihan set bail at $1 million.

If convicted, Marcellus could face 30 years to life in state prison.