Curfew, thefts land several in hot water

As Hurricane Isaac hovered over the Tri-Parish, at least five individuals were arrested for looting and two others received citations for curfew violations.

“We made an arrest Thursday night for a looting at the Dollar General Store in Gray,” said Terrebonne Parish Sheriff Jerry Larpenter. “That’s the only looting we had a call for.”

Those charged with looting, burglary committed during a state of emergency, can be fined $5,000 to $10,000 and spend a minimum of three years in jail.

In addition to the solitary looting, Larpenter also reported that the number of sightseers, who were breaking the parish-wide curfew by being out and about on area roads during the storm, was very low.

“The majority of the parish did not evacuate and 98 percent of those who stayed understood to stay home,” Larpenter said. “The others were either out, needing things from stores, or just didn’t care.”

One thing Larpenter believed was behind the number of people headed to stores amidst the storm was a lack of communication.

“People aren’t listening to the radio like they used to and they didn’t know the storm wasn’t over when they got up Wednesday morning,” Larpenter said. “People woke up and thought it was over and started cleaning up their yards and going out to get gas for their generators. Some stores were opening up during the storm, but when winds got to gale force, we made them close. The hurricane was slow, and the eye hovered here for several hours.”

Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Department deputies were on patrol in large trucks during most of the storm, removing debris from the highway and issuing warnings to those in the streets.

“The curfew order is to control you for your safety, not to control you for power,” Larpenter said. “The curfew is not for select few, but for the whole parish. Some places in the state may be having curfews for weeks. When people are out sightseeing, their home is left vulnerable. We had to work an accident during the curfew where a guy totaled his truck when he ran into a tree in Bourg. He had no business being on the road.”

In Houma, city police officers responded to a possible burglary in progress at 10:30 p.m. last Monday night near the 500 block of Hibernia Place. Residents reported noises coming from a residence that was being remodeled and officers later apprehended two suspects.

Andrew Authement, 46, of 115 Whitney Street in Houma and a 13-year-old juvenile were arrested for looting. Authement was also charged with contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile and possession of burglary tools.

The following night, officers also responded to a residential burglary on Melody Drive and attempted business burglaries on the eastside.

In addition to solving crimes committed during the storm, officers were also working to keep motorists off local roadways during curfews.

“There were lots of people on the streets, not minding the curfew,” Chief Todd Duplantis said. “When officers started to notice lots of traffic on the streets, we posted patrol cars at many intersections. Officers asked people where they were going, but we didn’t arrest anyone and told them to go home because there was a curfew in place.”

Many of the motorists were trying to reach a few small convenience stores that had opened during the storm, and officers asked them to close in light of the curfew, just as the Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Department had requested of other stores.

“We had to pull our officers off the road for a couple of hours on Tuesday because the winds were getting above 50 mph,” Duplantis said.

In Lafourche Parish, two individuals were issued citations on Wednesday for curfew violations after receiving warnings from Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office officers earlier that same day.

“These people were issued summons and not arrested,” said executive assistant Lt. Rebecca Hebert. “I am pretty certain they were out on the roadways during the brunt of the storm. Two were given warnings and when they reattempted to get onto the roadway later in the evening, both were issued citations for curfew violations. Deputies (were) doubled throughout the parish (from) the onset of the storm and worked to strictly enforce the curfew making traffic stops and questioning those out on the roadway.”

LPSO only reported one arrest for a storm-related crime.

Jeremy Rogers, 32, of Golden Meadow, was seen breaking into a vehicle in Lockport and attempting to break into a residence there as well, deputies said. An eyewitness was able to describe the suspect’s vehicle and officers later located Rogers at the Tobacco Plus Outlet in Galliano.

After exiting his vehicle, Rogers stated “What? I didn’t break into no house,” and immediately fled from the scene on foot. After a foot chase, Rogers was apprehended near Cut Off and charged with looting, simple criminal damage to property, attempted simple burglary of an inhabited dwelling and resisting an officer. Rogers was transported to the Lafourche Parish Detention Center in lieu of a $11,000 bond.

In the northern reaches of Lafourche Parish, Thibodaux Police Department Chief Scott Silverii reported that the department only had two calls for looting during the state of emergency.

“During the storm, all officers were mobilized and assigned to small sectors spread out across town,” Silverii said. “We had high visibility and no looting during the storm. After the storm, a milk deliveryman delivering milk stole Ding Dongs from a business he was delivering to. The looting was reported to us, and two subjects were discovered in the delivery truck and then arrested. One of the individuals was also arrested for marijuana possession.”

Silverii reported that very few residents were out on the road during the curfew and those who were stopped were checking on the elderly or moving them to another location after their power went out or taking them to a hospital.

“People complied with the curfew,” Silverii said. “We had a few vehicle crashes, but no injuries.

“Everything was very well managed. It’s good. People were preplanning and listening. We had great compliance from the people of Thibodaux and good cop work. Now it’s time to clean up and move forward.”