Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre announced a man wanted for the murder of a five-year-old Paitin Fields in North Carolina in 2017 has been arrested in Lafourche Parish. David Wesley Prevatte, 23, was arrested in Bayou Blue on Friday.

Fields was unresponsive when she was taken to a hospital on November 13, 2017. She was pronounced dead three days later. An autopsy showed signs of sexual trauma and strangulation. The Pender County Sheriff’s Office in North Carolina named Prevatte as a suspect in the case in June 2018. In March 2019, Prevatte pled guilty to unrelated charges of intimidating a witness, breaking and entering, larceny, and burning a building. He served approximately ten months before his release from prison in January 2020.

Through investigation, the Pender County Sheriff’s Office obtained an arrest warrant for Prevatte for First Degree Murder, First Degree Statutory Rape, and Statutory Sex Offense with Child by Adult. Investigators from Pender County arrived in Lafourche Parish after tracking Prevatte’s location to Bayou Blue. With assistance from the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office, Prevatte was taken into custody on Friday, February 4, 2022. He was booked into the Lafourche Parish Correctional Complex where he will remain awaiting extradition to Pender County.

Pender County Sheriff Alan Cutler said, “This has been an ongoing investigation and I am extremely pleased and proud of the effort that has been put into this investigation by my personnel. I would also like to express my thanks to Sheriff Craig Webre and his staff in Lafourche Parish for assisting our investigators with taking Prevatte into custody.”

Sheriff Craig Webre extended his appreciation to Sheriff Cutler as well. “I offer my sincere gratitude to Sheriff Cutler for the tenacity and professionalism of his team that led to the arrest in this case. We were more than happy to assist in what will hopefully bring closure to a case and bring the perpetrator of a heinous crime to justice.”

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre announced a Raceland man is wanted for aggravated assault and home invasion after pointing a gun at a teenage girl. A warrant has been issued for the arrest of Armond Poindexter, 21, for the incident that occurred on Sunday afternoon.

Just before 2:15 p.m. on Sunday, January 30, deputies responded to a disturbance at a residence in the 1300 block of St. Marie Street in Bayou Blue. Deputies learned a teenage girl was babysitting an infant child when Poindexter allegedly entered the residence without permission demanding to see the child. Poindexter is reportedly the father of the child but does not have custodial rights. He asked to take the infant with him, and when the babysitter refused, Poindexter pointed a gun at her demanding she hand over the child. He left the residence soon after, leaving the infant behind.

Poindexter is wanted for Aggravated Assault with a Firearm and Home Invasion. Anyone with information on his whereabouts can submit information anonymously through Crime Stoppers Bayou Region by phone at 1-800-743-7433, online at CrimeStoppersBR.org, or through the Bayou Tips app on mobile devices. Tipsters could be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000 in cash if the information leads to an arrest.

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre announced the arrest of a Larose man for contractor fraud. Brody Anselmi, 35, has been charged with contractor fraud and felony theft in four investigations this month.

In early January, a Larose man reported that Anselmi was hired for roof repairs and paid several thousand dollars upfront. Anselmi never started the job, offering several excuses. When the man asked for his money back, Anselmi claimed he didn’t have any money.

In another case, an elderly Larose woman had paid Anselmi for drywall replacement at her residence. She initially paid $2,000 as a down payment but then he asked for larger payments on two separate occasions. After she paid, Anselmi again offered excuses for being unable to start the work. He also told her he used her payment on other projects.

In a third case, a Galliano man paid Anselmi a down payment to repair a fence. Anselmi performed some work to tear down the old fence, but never completed the job. Again, he asked for more money and never returned. After several months, the man asked for his money back, but Anselmi never provided it.

Investigators obtained warrants for his arrest, and he was booked into the Lafourche Parish Correctional Complex on January 5, 2021.

Following his arrest, a Raceland woman came forward with similar allegations that Anselmi had been paid but had not started work. Detectives obtained another warrant, and Anselmi was booked accordingly.

Collectively, Anselmi pocketed $28,000 from the four victims without finishing the jobs and in some cases, he never started any work. He has been charged with three counts of Residential Contractor Fraud and one count of Felony Theft. He remains at the Lafourche Parish Correctional Complex. Bail is set at $42,500.

UPDATE: The helicopter crash site has been located. Responders continue to search for survivors.

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre announced deputies are currently investigating a report of a helicopter crash near the west side of the South Lafourche Levee System. The crash was reported by a concerned citizen. No additional information is available at this time. We will provide more information as the investigation continues.

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre is asking the public for help in locating a stolen side-by-side utility vehicle following a suspect’s arrest on Wednesday. Curt Schexnayder is charged with Felony Theft in the investigation.

On the morning of January 6, 2022, deputies responded to the 100 block of East 52nd Street in Cut Off in reference to a stolen side-by-side utility vehicle. Detectives developed Schexnayder as a suspect in the investigation. They obtained a warrant for his arrest and a search warrant for his residence on North Oak Street in Lockport. The side-by-side was not located on his property.

Schexnayder was booked into the Lafourche Parish Correctional Complex in Thibodaux on one count of Felony Theft. He was released late Wednesday night after posting bail in the amount of $10,000.

Investigators are now asking the public to assist in the recovery of the stolen property. The utility vehicle is a red 2019 Honda Pioneer side-by-side with four seats and a black top. Anyone who may know the location of this stolen vehicle should contact the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division at (985) 532-4320.

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre is asking the public to help identify the owner of a vehicle who is wanted for questioning in reference to a stolen ATV in Raceland.

On January 12, 2022, deputies responded to a report of a stolen ATV in the 3100 block of LA Highway 1 in Raceland. The ATV is a camouflage 2012 Can-am Outlander 800 with an orange lift kit and black and chrome wheels. It was stolen from a shed overnight. Surveillance cameras captured a white GMC pickup truck with a trailer backing onto the property just before 2 a.m. on Wednesday. The driver of the vehicle appears to be a white male. Investigators believe the truck was also involved in other thefts around that time frame.

Investigators are asking for assistance from anyone who may recognize this vehicle and knows the owner or the vehicle’s location. Tips can be submitted anonymously through Crime Stoppers Bayou Region by phone at 1-800-743-7433, online at CrimeStoppersBR.org, or through the Bayou Tips app on mobile devices. Tipsters could be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000 in cash if the information leads to an arrest.

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre announced the arrest of a suspected Raceland meth dealer following an investigation. Alan Hebert, 52, of Raceland was arrested on Monday.

Agents had been investigating Alan Hebert and had obtained a warrant for his arrest for Distribution of Methamphetamine. On January 10, 2022, agents proceeded to his residence on St. Ann Street and found Hebert riding a bicycle. Agents approached Hebert and took him into custody. He was found to have a small plastic bag of suspected methamphetamine that he had attempted to conceal in his mouth.

Agents then obtained a search warrant for Hebert’s residence. Inside the home, they found 8 additional small bags of suspected methamphetamine and other items commonly associated with the sale and use of illegal narcotics. Agents also located a firearm at the residence.

Hebert was booked into the Lafourche Parish Correctional Complex in Thibodaux on the aforementioned warrant. He was also charged with Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, and Illegal Carrying of a Weapon in the Presence of a Controlled Dangerous Substance. Bail is set at $110,000.

Citizens are reminded that they can report any drug-related or suspicious activity. Information can be reported directly to the Narcotics section commander, Lieutenant Derek Champagne, at (985) 532-4365 or derek-champagne@lpso.net. Information can also be reported anonymously through Crime Stoppers Bayou Region at 1-800-743-7433, online at CrimeStoppersBR.org, or via the Bayou Tips app on mobile devices.

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre announced a Raceland man wanted for attempted murder has been arrested following a multi-agency investigation. Pepper Cooper, 20, of Raceland was arrested early Monday morning. Jacobe Jackson, 19, of Houma, who was with Cooper, was also arrested. The arrests were the result of a joint investigation involving the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office, Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Office and the Houma Police Department.

Investigators in Lafourche and Terrebonne have been looking into several recent shooting incidents and had developed Pepper as a suspect. Investigators in Terrebonne obtained warrants for him for six counts of Attempted 1st Degree Murder. This past weekend, narcotics agents and detectives from both parishes worked to obtain search warrants on Pepper and attempted to locate him. Eventually, they tracked him to a motel on LA Highway 182 in Raceland.

At around 1:15 a.m. on January 10, 2022, investigators commanded Cooper to exit his room. Cooper and Jackson both exited the motel room and were taken into custody without incident. Jackson had narcotics in his pockets including crack cocaine. After obtaining additional search warrants for the room and Cooper’s vehicle, agents found suspected marijuana, a pistol, and a semi-automatic rifle with a drum magazine. They also located armor-piercing rounds and drug paraphernalia inside the vehicle.

Both men were booked into the Lafourche Parish Correctional Complex in Thibodaux. Cooper was charged with Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana, Illegal Carrying of a Weapon in the Presence of a Controlled Dangerous Substance, and Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Bail is set at $65,000, but he is also being held on the warrants in Terrebonne Parish for attempted murder in which bail is set $6.05 million.

Jackson was charged with Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana, Possession of Crack Cocaine, and Illegal Carrying of a Weapon in the Presence of a Controlled Dangerous Substance. Bail is set at $20,000, but he is also being held on outstanding warrants in Terrebonne Parish and East Baton Rouge Parish.

“This was a great team effort that in all likelihood will mean the prevention of an eventual murder,” said Sheriff Craig Webre. “Through the use of investigative resources and technology, our agencies worked together to remove a dangerous criminal from the streets.”