The St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office has arrested a 15-year-old juvenile and is searching for two other suspects after the trio fired multiple shots Thursday night, (Feb. 5, 2026) at a group of people standing outside of a house in the 1800 block of Southdown Road in LaPlace. No injuries were reported.
Five vehicles and at least one home on the street were damaged by gunfire.
“This was a targeted incident involving an on-going feud between two groups,” St. John Parish Sheriff Mike Tregre said. “We appreciate the assistance from the community and the help that we’ve received with identifying and capturing one of the people responsible for the shooting. We are anticipating other arrests.”
Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the area at 7:05 p.m. after receiving 911 calls about multiple gunshots in the area.
Investigators determined that the three suspects opened fire on the group of people they have an on-going feud with and then fled the area.
The Sheriff’s Office used its aerial drone and was able to track the path of the male juvenile who fled on foot with a backpack. He was found in a nearby backyard. Three guns were recovered from the backpack that are believed to have been used in the shooting.
The juvenile has been booked with three counts of illegal possession of a handgun by a juvenile (felony), illegal use of a weapons or dangerous instrumentalities and aggravated criminal damage to property (felony). He is being held in a juvenile detention center.
Anyone who has information regarding this case is encouraged to call the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office TIPS line at 985-359-TIPS, the Criminal Investigations Division at (504) 494-4194 (Det. Denis James) or Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111. Citizens can also submit tips on the Sheriff’s Office website at https://stjohnsheriff.org/crime-arrests/crime-tips/give-us-a-general-crime-tip/