Houma weapons suspect called ‘a major customer’

On the surface Michael Hebert, 61, is known as an independent welding inspector. According to Terrebonne Parish Sheriff Jerry Larpenter, the Houma man has worked internationally in connection with the oil and gas industry.

What was not known about Hebert, prior to his arrest last Monday by federal agents, was what was inside his home in the Landing at the Bayou Cane apartment complex, 1803 Martin Luther King Blvd.

Upon investigation, which included a six-hour evacuation of the complex, federal agents found evidence leading to Hebert being charged with 19 counts of possession of illegal firearms and 10 counts unlawful possession of fraudulent credentials and badges, including fake FBI, CIA and sheriff’s office identification cards.

“We don’t know what he might have been planning on doing with them,” Larpenter said of the items found.

The Terrebonne sheriff said a U.S. Secret Service investigation, leading to Houma and Hebert, began based on a tip offered during an unspecified presidential rally organizational meeting.

“The Secret Service allegedly stopped somebody with a fake I.D. and found that this person had purchased the I.D. through someone selling them on EBay,” Larpenter said.

The sheriff said federal agents located the false document seller in New Mexico, then began looking at his client list. Hebert was allegedly singled-out as one of that suspect’s primary customers.

“[Hebert] purchased hundreds of these fraudulent badges [representing] various agencies,” Larpenter said. “We are trying to find out if any of these went overseas.”

Secret Service agents intercepted Hebert in Atlanta one week prior to his arrest, as he returned from Nigeria, and escorted him to Houma. “The Secret Service then got in contact with my detectives and went to his [apartment] where they found the evidence,” the sheriff said.

Larpenter explained that distributing fake credentials identifying a holder as a federal agent could lead to a wide range of criminal and terrorist-related possibilities. “People can use this kind of identification to help themselves in illegal activities,” he said.

Larpenter identified Hebert as a convicted felon who was arrested in 1993 for selling an automatic machine gun and sending it across state lines.

Hebert is expected to be arraigned within the next 30 days.

Federal agencies are not commenting on the case.