Off-duty officer mobbed and robbed  while riding bike in New Orleans



Just before 3:00 a.m. on August 8, an off-duty NOPD officer was allegedly attacked and robbed outside the St. Louis Market off Bourbon Street in New Orleans' French Quarter.

4WWL reported that an off-duty officer, 23, pedaled his bike past a large group of people outside the St. Louis Market. Security footage shows the officer speaking to persons in the crowd while still mobile. One suspect is said to have demanded the officer's bike. When the officer refused to comply, a struggle broke out.

Several young men can be seen attacking the officer within minutes of the initial interaction.

The officer regained his footing after being hurled to the ground and, at the top of the hour, allegedly swung back at his aggressors. Peripheral fights then allegedly broke out, engulfing the officer.

In the melee, the officer's personal handgun was reported stolen.

By 3:05 a.m., NOPD arrived at the scene and arrested a 16-year-old suspect. The suspect was reportedly later booked into the Juvenile Justice Intervention Center on charges of second-degree battery and simple robbery.

The officer's name has not been released because victims' names are not publicized in criminal incidents.

Local business owner Haytham Hamed, general manager of Vieux Carre Pizza, told KSLA that similar groupings of violent young men have prompted him to close his establishment early as well as to consider changing careers. "Crime is high ... It's like we are in a war."

Violent crime is on the rise in New Orleans. The city is rated a 2 on Neighborhood Scout's crime index (100 is safest), with a property crime rate of 47.13 and a violent crime rate of 13.6 per 1,000 residents.

There were 218 murders in 2021. 145 homicides had already been reported by June 30 of this year, setting the city on its way to having a homicide rate of 77 per 100,000 — one of the highest murder rates in the world, on par with gang hot spots in Honduras and Mexico. Chicago, by way of comparison, sees 18.26 murders per 100,000 population.

According to City Journal, this correlates with Soros-backed District Attorney Jason Williams' "more selective" approach to prosecuting violent offenders. The felony conviction rate dropped from 57% in 2019 to 21% in 2021, the year that Williams — under indictment for tax fraud — took office. Nearly 20% of the felony cases dismissed were violent crimes.

After being sworn in, Williams claimed: "Being more selective about prosecutions will allow us to focus on the crimes that matter most to all of us."

3 people shot at high school graduation ceremony



At least three people were shot during a high school graduation ceremony at Xavier University in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Tuesday afternoon.

What are the details?

According to reports, gunfire broke out in the parking lot as two women began fighting.

One elderly woman was struck and killed. Two other victims, both male, were also hit but are expected to recover.

One witness told WDSU-TV that it was his friend's grandmother who lost her life following the ceremony.

"She got shot right there in the street like she was a dog or some s***, man," the witness said, recalling at least two dozen shots ringing out as panicked graduates and their families fled from the source of the shooting. Another witness added, "We just heard gunshots. They were fighting. My cousin said, 'They're fighting over there, let's go.' Then I heard gunshots."

New Orleans Police Department Deputy Superintendent Christopher Goodly condemned the shooting as a "senseless act of violence."

"This did not have to happen," Goodly added. "We had a good amount of security here — interior coverage and exterior coverage. Xavier Police were on the scene along with Second District Police."

Three suspects were detained in the shooting, but no arrests have been made at the time of this reporting.

An investigation into the incident is ongoing.

What else is there to know about this?

New Orleans Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Henderson Lewis Jr. expressed his anguish in a statement.

"I am outraged and saddened by the callousness shown today outside Xavier University. The graduating seniors of Morris Jeff were there to share in their collective achievements and bask in the brightness of their futures – only to have their optimism ripped apart by gun violence," Lewis said. "This has got to stop. We must come together as a community, as a country, and address the damage caused by access to guns and to get to the root of the anger and despair that compels individuals to even think of harming others. All our children have a right to be safe and we must do all we can in our power to protect that right. My heart breaks for the families of the victims, and I implore us all to rally around them in their time of need.”

Morris Jeff Head of School Patricia Perkins added, "This is a horrific tragedy on what should be a day of celebration for our seniors, but Morris Jeff is a strong school community and we will unite to help each other heal. Every day, we teach our children to solve their differences with their words and to be compassionate toward each other. Our graduates will make a difference in this world because they learn to see each other as equal human beings. This resolve is only stronger after today’s violence.”

Shock video: Burglar gets rude surprise during truck break-in after the owner takes matters into his own hands to deter criminals



Frustrated with rampant crime, a Louisiana man recently rigged his truck with a flash-bang to deter criminals from burglarizing the vehicle — and based on newly released surveillance video, the unusual tactic worked.

WDSU-TV reported Tuesday that the truck owner, a man from Metairie, Louisiana, who wished to remain anonymous, said he was tired of criminals breaking into his truck, so he decided to take matters into his own hands.

Sure enough, surveillance footage caught a suspect attempting to break into the truck while it was parked on the side of a street in New Orleans.

The video shows a white sedan pull up next to the truck before a man dressed in all black and wearing a hoodie jumps out of the passenger seat.

The burglary suspect then breaks the truck's driver's side window and climbs part-way into the vehicle. That's when the flash-bang suddenly went off, surprising the burglar and sending him and his getaway driver scurrying from the scene.

Wild video: NOPD urges residents not to take matters into their own hands after video shows a man who rigged a flash bang in his truck to deter car burglars >> https://bit.ly/36YPeGH\u00a0pic.twitter.com/aS05UX6cY2
— wdsu (@wdsu) 1649194382

In response to the video, the New Orleans Police Department reportedly put out a statement urging residents not to deter car burglaries by rigging explosives.

"While we understand the frustrations our citizens have with crime, rigging an explosive device to detonate inside a vehicle is illegal and a bad idea," the department said. "Not only is there a risk of injury to yourself and others, [but there could also be] serious legal ramifications for everyone involved."

"Please call your District station or Crimestoppers to report illegal activity," it added.

Speaking with WDSU, the Metairie man expressed that he understands his actions weren't the best way to prevent crime but added that he had grown exasperated over the frequency with which his truck was being burglarized.

The video elicited a wide range of responses on Twitter, though many seemed to side with the truck owner and complain that police inaction has left residents with no good options.

"NOPD urges residents not to break into other people's cars (fixed it for you)," one commenter said.

Another replied, "Correct, residents should use fragmentation grenades instead."

"Follow up question to the NOPD. Are you going to take carjacking and car robbery seriously OR continue to force residents to find ways to deter criminals?" still another added.

One person even quipped: "How, specifically, should I not rig a flash bang in my vehicle?"

New Orleans father arrested in alleged 'street justice' killing of man accused of murdering his son



New Orleans police have arrested a father who allegedly shot and killed a man who is accused of murdering his son.

Bokio B. Johnson, 46, is accused of shooting to death Hollis Carter, 21, and wounding Carter's mother in the Gentilly neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana.

Carter and his mother were headed to court around 9 a.m. on March 23. Minutes before arriving at their scheduled court hearing, they stopped their white sedan at a traffic light when a black Ford F-150 pulled up beside them, the New Orleans Advocate reported. Johnson allegedly executed a deadly drive-by shooting. Carter was shot in the head twice and died at the crime scene. The mother was critically injured in the shooting.

Pastor Mike Smith of Bethel Baptist Community Church said he witnessed the shooting and told WVUE-TV, "When they heard it, everybody turned and they saw a gentleman standing out with his rifle pointing in the car."

"[The mother] was hurt, she couldn't feel her legs, and they called the police. She kept saying, 'My baby, he's in the car, is he ok?' They didn't tell her that he was deceased, they just sent her to the hospital," Smith said.

Carter was headed to court for the alleged slaying of Caleb Johnson, 18, and his stepsister Breyiana Brown, 25, in March 2021.

Caleb – a senior at the Edna Karr High School – was the son of Bokio Johnson.

Johnson's obituary reads: "Caleb leaves behind to cherish his memories his loving parents Bokio Johnson and DeCarlas O'Neal-Johnson." The obituary added that the teen planned to enlist in the U.S. Navy after graduating high school.

Carter – who was facing two second-degree murder charges – served five months before he was released after making a $375,000 bond, according to WWL-TV.

Police said Carter confessed to the murders, but his attorney claimed that Carter provided a false confession because he was fearing retribution from the actual gunman.

Authorities believe the lethal shooting on March 28, 2021, happened because of a gun sale that went wrong in the parking lot of an apartment complex in the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans. A third unidentified person suffered non-deadly injuries in the shooting.

John Fuller – the defense attorney who represented Carter – said on Wednesday that he believed, "Street justice has resulted in an assurance that there would never be any closure in this case."

Bokio Johnson's attorney said, "People have jumped to conclusions."

"While it is admittedly true that the victim in this matter was accused of the March 2021 murder of Mr. Johnson's son and daughter, that does not, especially in a city like New Orleans, indicate that this is a matter of vigilante justice," attorney Michael Kennedy wrote in a statement.

"If and when the State of Louisiana chooses to indict Mr. Johnson, I can state without question, we will stand together and loudly and clearly respond, 'Not guilty,'" Kennedy declared.

On Friday, Bokio Johnson was booked into the Orleans Justice Center on one count each of second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder, according to Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office records.

Gentilly father who lost son in shooting last year arrested in connection with deadly shooting www.youtube.com

Home invasion suspect picks the wrong home to enter — and ends up dead when he meets armed homeowner



An armed homeowner reportedly took the life of a home invasion suspect during a Thursday night encounter, police say.

The incident took place in New Orleans, Louisiana, in the famed French Quarter neighborhood.

What are the details?

According to a Friday report from the Times-Picayune and New Orleans Advocate, the suspect — identified by WVUE-TV as 29-year-old Matthew Clark — reportedly entered a French Quarter home around 7 p.m. local time and lunged toward the homeowner.

The homeowner — who is not facing charges at the time of this reporting — remains unnamed at this time.

Neighbors later told police that they witnessed a male who appeared to have been intoxicated and who was yanking on buildings' door handles along the block.

Two witnesses said that the suspect was banging his fists on neighborhood doors and appeared to be so drunk he could barely remain on his feet.

When the suspect arrived at what would be his final destination and began pounding on its door, the homeowner reportedly retrieved a gun and opened the door.

At that point, the suspect reportedly lunged at the homeowner, who, in turn, fatally wounded the would-be intruder.

A New Orleans Police Department spokesperson told the outlet that the homeowner is not facing charges "based on the investigation and circumstances of this incident."

As such, the department said it would not release any further information about the armed homeowner.

Area resident Dereck "Woody" Terry told WVUE-TV that the situation is "unfortunate."

“I mean these things happen but again it's Thursday night at 6 o'clock with a drizzle and you don't expect something like that to go down," Terry told the station. “We don't know the real story. Hearing bits and pieces of what happened. But it's unfortunate regardless."

Surveillance video captured the moments that led to the fatal shooting.