Thread: 2 Louisiana sheriff's deputies die in ‘ambush’ responding to earlier shooting

2 Louisiana sheriff's deputies die in ‘ambush’ responding to earlier shooting

Published August 16, 2012
FoxNews.com

Two sheriff's deputies in Louisiana have been shot to death and two others injured after an early-morning shootout in St. John the Baptist Parish, west of New Orleans.

SUMMARY

• 2 deputies killed in 'ambush'-style shooting
• 5 suspects are in custody, 2 hospitalized after shooting
• Authorities say there are no remaining suspects
• Gov. Jindal says the suspects will face the fullest extent of the law

Authorities identified the deceased officers as Brandon Nielsen, 34, and Jeremy Triche, 28. The Times-Picayune reported that the injured officers are Michael Scott Boyington, 33, and Jason Triche, 30.

The first shooting occurred around 5:30 a.m. in a parking lot used by workers in an area of manufacturing plants and refineries along the Mississippi River.

Louisiana authorities say the two sheriff's deputies were killed in an "ambush" after they responded to reports of a traffic officer being shot multiple times early Thursday morning near an isolated parking lot for a Valero refinery.

Residents at the Riverview trailer park notified police about a speeding car, which matched the description of the car used in the earlier shooting, Michael Kerry Tregre, the St. John the Baptist sheriff, said.

The two officers were interviewing an individual underneath some blankets. During the interview, another person exited the trailer with an assault weapon and "ambushed" them, Tregre said.

"Another person exited that trailer with an assault weapon and ambushed my two officers," Tregre said. Two deputies were killed and a third was wounded. Two suspects were wounded in the shootout before officers subdued them, Tregre said.

Louisiana State Police have taken over the investigation. The investigation is considered “hot” and ongoing.

There are five people in custody, authorities said. Two of them were hurt in the shooting and are hospitalized. It was unclear how officers managed to take the suspect with the assault weapon into custody.

Authorities do not believe there are any additional suspects.

"Air support and local law enforcement combined with us," Trooper Evan Hallel, told FOX-8. "We got feet on the ground and people in the woods.

We're trying to gather all the information that we could at this time."

Two officers in the earlier shooting suffered gunshot wounds and are hospitalized. One is currently undergoing surgery.

The Times-Picayune reported that deputies were outside the emergency room at River Parishes Hospital, which is holding Officer Jason Triche. He reportedly suffered multiple injuries to his kidney, spleen and bladder.

Governor Bobby Jindal released a statement calling the shooting a "terrible act of violence."

"The Louisiana State Police will be working in conjunction with other law enforcement agencies to fully investigate this incident and make sure the suspects are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," the statement read.

The superintendent for St. John the Baptist Parish was told not to open a nearby school, but authorities say there is no public threat.

Valero Energy Corporation said in a statement that its "thoughts and prayers" are with the officers and their families. Refinery operations have not been affected, the statement said.

2 Louisiana sheriff's deputies die in

The 5 people in custody have still not been identified. Prayers for their families/

St. John Sheriff: Deputies were ambushed
Updated: Aug 16, 2012 5:06 PM CDT

VIDEO AT LINK.

Brandon Nielson


Jeremy Triche


Jason Triche


Michael Scott Boyington





LaPlace, La. - Two St. John the Baptist Parish deputies were shot and killed Thursday morning and two other deputies were wounded in what Sheriff Mike Tregre called an "ambush."

The initial shooting happened around 5:30 a.m. at a parking lot off La. Highway 3217, used by contractors working at the nearby Valero St. Charles Refinery.

Sheriff Tregre said a deputy was working a security detail at the lot and was shot and wounded there.

Tregre said someone called deputies with a description of a car fleeing the scene, and officers tracked it to a nearby mobile home park.

When officers found the car, they handcuffed a suspect outside a mobile home, then knocked on its door. Tregre said someone with a dog answered.

"Another person exited that trailer with an assault weapon and ambushed my two officers," Tregre said. Two deputies were killed and a third was wounded.

Two suspects were wounded in the shootout before officers subdued them, Tregre said.

The deputies killed in the shooting have been identified as 34-year-old Brandon Nielsen, a two-year veteran and 27-year-old Jeremy Triche, a four-year veteran.

The wounded deputies have been identified as 33-year-old Michael Scott Boyington, a three-year veteran, and 30-year-old Jason Triche, a 10-year veteran.

The Triches were related, Tregre said, though he did not know how. It remained unclear where Jason Triche was shot.

Tregre said Nielson is survived by his wife and five children, and Jeremy Triche by his wife and 2-year-old son.

Jason Triche is undergoing surgery at University Hospital in New Orleans. Boyington was taken to River Parishes Hospital. Sheriff Tregre said in a Thursday afternoon news conference that Triche and Boyington's conditions were improving at last report.

The sheriff also reported that five people, both male and female, are in custody in connection with the shootings. He did not identify them. Two of them were wounded in the mobile home shooting, but they are expected to survive.

Col. Mike Edmonson of the Louisiana State Police told reporters at the news conference, "We have the people in custody that we're talking to right now, or they're in the hospital, that we believe are responsible for this."

He said none have been charged at this point.

Edmonson said, "I can tell you it was multiple weapons, and I can tell you it was multiple gunshots, in excess of 20 gunshots. We need to find those casings -- those casings will tell us exactly how many gunshots."

The State Police are leading the investigation and are assisted by several law enforcement organizations, including the St. Bernard Parish Sheriff's Office, the Slidell Police Department and the St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office.

Even after the news conference, we still do not know many details of the shootings, nor have we been told which deputies were shot at which location.
"I wish I could give a rhyme or reason," Edmonson said. "I can't give one. We've seen far too much of this across our nation. A small community like this, awakened early in the morning to multiple gunshots."

Bill Day, spokesman for Valero Energy Corp., said operations at the refinery had not been affected. Valero employees were being asked to report to work as normal, unless they park at the lot where the incident took place.

Some other plants in the area were letting non-essential workers in the area leave for the day or were telling them not to report for work as the search continued.

Gov. Bobby Jindal ordered the state flags flown at half-staff over the state Capitol and all public buildings and institutions until sunset Friday. The move, described as "an expression of respect for the four sheriff's deputies," was effective immediately, the governor's order said.
St. John Sheriff: Deputies were ambushed - New Orleans Local News, Weather, Sports, Investigations

August 17, 2012 5:07 PM

Seven arrested in connection with La. shooting that left 2 officers dead


(AP) LAPLACE, La. - A man accused of making threatening comments about law enforcement officers in Nebraska was one of seven people arrested in connection with the shootings of four Louisiana sheriff's deputies, including two who were killed, state police said Friday.

The two other deputies were recovering from serious gunshot wounds after the Thursday morning shootings.

Motives behind the shootings and exactly how they unfolded have not been released. The seven were arrested in connection with the attempted murder of the first deputy shot, Michael Scott Boyington.

Charges have not yet been filed in connection with the two deputies who were killed or the second wounded deputy.

"We don't know precisely what happened yet," Ronnie Jones, an assistant to the state police superintendent, said at a news conference. "We're still putting pieces together.

The superintendent, Col. Mike Edmonson, said the case is complex, involving two different crime scenes, multiple weapons and numerous witnesses. He said evidence and interviews so far place five of those arrested at the scene where Boyington was shot -- the entrance of a parking lot used by contract workers on a job at a nearby oil refinery. Boyington was working off-duty on a security detail at the lot.

Shortly thereafter, more deputies were shot at a nearby trailer park where a car involved in the first shooting was spotted. There, St. John the Baptist Parish deputies Brandon Nielsen and Jeremy Triche were killed.

Brian Lyn Smith, 24, was charged with attempted first-degree murder.
Terry Smith, 44; Derrick Smith, 22; Kyle David Joekel, 28; and Teniecha Bright 21, face charges of principal to attempted first-degree murder.

Arrested as accessories after the fact were 37-year-old Chanel Skains and 23-year-old Britney Keith. Authorities listed all as being from LaPlace, about 25 miles west of New Orleans.

Joekel and Brian Smith are hospitalized with gunshot wounds and will be jailed once they are out of the hospital. The others were jailed with bonds ranging from $350,000 to $750,000.

Trooper Melissa Matey, a state police spokeswoman, said "principal" charges indicate some sort of active participation in a crime, while accessory charges usually involve some aid to the suspect or an effort to hinder an investigation.

Neither Edmonson nor Sheriff Mike Tregre would discuss the criminal histories or possible motives of any of the suspects.

However, details on some suspects' past were beginning to emerge.

The Gage County, Neb., Sheriff's Office website listed Joekel among its most wanted fugitives, saying he is accused of making "terroristic threats" to patrons of a Nebraska bar and law enforcement officials.

The sheriff's office confirmed on the website that Joekel has been arrested in Louisiana but said it would release no other details, referring calls to Louisiana authorities. The same website also said Joekel is wanted in Kansas for felony flight to avoid arrest in connection with the Nebraska threats. The site said Joekel fled when Marshall County Sheriff's Office deputies tried to stop the vehicle he was driving.

In DeSoto Parish in northern Louisiana, Sheriff Rodney Arbuckle said authorities were working to confirm whether some of the suspects arrested in the Thursday shootings had been among a group of people under surveillance for suspicious activity at an RV park in his area. DeSoto deputies had started watching the RV park after three men and two women were seen getting in and out of vehicles with assault weapons.

Tregre did not have detailed conditions on the two wounded deputies, Boyington and Jason Triche. Jason Triche was somehow related to one of the slain men, Jeremy Triche.

However, he said both were recovering and gaining strength Friday. Triche, he said, "couldn't really speak but he could write," and Boyington was well enough to joke that he would be back at work Monday.

A candlelight vigil for the slain officers was planned Friday night in front of the St. John the Baptist Parish government building where employees spent part of the day lined up in front of two mobile blood donation buses, part of a blood drive for the wounded officers.

Seven arrested in connection with La. shooting that left 2 officers dead - Crimesider - CBS News

Sheriff: Suspects in killings of 2 Louisiana deputies linked to anti-government extremists

By Associated Press, AP

NEW ORLEANS — At least some of the seven people arrested in a fatal shootout with Louisiana deputies have been linked to violent anarchists on the FBI’s domestic terrorism watch lists, a sheriff said Saturday.

Detectives had been monitoring the group before Thursday’s shootout in Laplace in which two deputies were killed and two more wounded, said DeSoto Parish Sheriff Rodney Arbuckle. His detectives and other law enforcement discovered the suspects were heavily armed adherents to an ideology known as the “sovereign citizens” movement.

The FBI has classified “sovereign citizens” as people who believe they are free from all duties of a U.S. citizen, like paying taxes. The FBI considers the group’s members a danger for making threats to judges and law enforcement, using fake currency and impersonating police officers.

The seven suspects have been charged in the shooting of Deputy Michael Scott Boyington, who survived. But authorities have said murder charges are pending.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said it was investigating the killings but declined to comment Saturday and referred questions to the Louisiana State Police, the lead investigating agency.

Arrested were the group’s apparent leader, 44-year-old Terry Smith, his wife, Chanel Skains, 37, and his two sons, Derrick Smith, 22, and Brian Lyn Smith, 24. Also arrested were Brittney Keith, the girlfriend of Brian Smith; Kyle David Joekel, 28, and a woman living with him, 21-year-old Teniecha Bright.

Brian Smith was charged with attempted first-degree murder and the others with related charges.

Detectives in Tennessee, Nebraska and Louisiana have sketched a portrait of an outlaw gang led by a 44-year-old accused molester named Terry Smith, who has a criminal record dating to 1984 in Morehouse Parish, the Times-Picayune reported Saturday.

Morehouse Parish Sheriff Mike Stubbs said the Smith family was notorious. He said they lived for a long time in a house on the outskirts of Bastrop.

“We had a good bit of dealings with them,” he said. He said the Smith brothers had been involved in theft and drugs.

Arbuckle, reached by telephone by The Associated Press, said his deputies had the group under surveillance and considered them armed and dangerous before they suddenly left his parish about two months ago. He said they had set up camp at a mobile home park while they working at an International Paper plant.

The sheriff said deputies became suspicious after they investigated a reported burglary in May at the park’s laundry. The detectives discovered members wanted under warrants issued in Tennessee, Nebraska and Louisiana.

“Once we had them on our radar we started doing research on them,” he said. Arbuckle said his detectives monitored the group until they left in November.

Sovereign citizens are a loosely organized movement founded in the 1970s and more fully developed in the 1980s, according to the Anti-Defamation League website. Sovereign citizens believe that all levels of government have no jurisdiction over them and resist — sometimes with violence — authority including police, the website.

They also like to use what is dubbed “paper terrorism.” It involves using frivolous lawsuits and fake documents and of using genuine documents such as IRS forms to intimidate, harass and coerce public officials, law enforcement officers and private citizens.

Arbuckle said his detectives could easily have been the victims instead of the St. John the Baptist Parish deputies killed and wounded. Deputies Brandon Nielsen and Jeremy Triche were killed and along with Boyington, Jason Triche was wounded. The Triches were somehow related, authorities said.

“We understand they had some pretty good firepower,” Arbuckle said. “This very well could have been us” in the gunfight, he said.
He said the group traveled the country in trailers doing construction work and possessed a stockpile of weapons.

They were arrested after an early morning assault on Boyington led to the deadly shootout in the mobile home park in Laplace, a suburb west of New Orleans. Boyington was shot at the entrance of a parking lot used by contract workers on a job at a nearby oil refinery. He was working off-duty on a security detail at the lot.

Shortly thereafter, the other deputies were shot at the trailer park where a car involved in the first shooting was spotted.

Joekel and Brian Smith were hospitalized with gunshot wounds and will be jailed once they are out of the hospital. The others were jailed with bonds ranging from $350,000 to $750,000.

The Gage County, Neb., Sheriff’s Office website listed Joekel among its most wanted fugitives, saying he is accused of making “terroristic threats” to patrons of a Nebraska bar and law enforcement officials.

Sgt. Len Marie, a state police spokesman, said investigators were amassing evidence. He said the agency had received the reports from the DeSoto sheriff and other law enforcement agencies in other states.

He said the FBI and Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms was involved.
He said it was too early to verify links to the extremist groups associated with the sovereign citizen movement.

“We are confident that we have the people responsible for this in custody,” Marie said.

Sheriff: Suspects in killings of 2 Louisiana deputies linked to anti-government extremists - The Washington Post

I think this bunch sound like a violent family that is into drugs and theft that are just a bunch of grifters and thieves. I have a hard time believing they were some organized "group", but time will tell. They should be presecuted to the fULL extent of the law. Prayers to the families of the fallen and wounded officers.

Suspects in deputy killings linked to extremists

CAIN BURDEAU, Associated Press

Updated 9:48 p.m., Saturday, August 18, 2012




This photo provided by St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office shows Terry Smith. Authorities have identified seven people arrested in the investigation of the shootings of four Louisiana sheriff's deputies. Two died and the other two were wounded. State police said Friday that five of those arrested were at the scene where the shootings began. Two others are accused of being accessories. Motives behind the shootings and exactly how they unfolded have not been released. Although two deputies died, no murder charges have been filed. Twenty-four-year-old Brian Lyn Smith was charged with attempted first-degree murder. Forty-four-year-old Terry Smith; 22-year-old Derrick Smith; 28-year-old Kyle David Joekel; and 21-year-old Teniecha Bright are facing a charge of principal to attempted first-degree murder. Joekel and Brian Smith are hospitalized with gunshot wounds. Arrested on suspicion of being accessories after the fact were 37-year-old Chanel Skains and 23-year-old Britney Keith. All are from LaPlace. (St. John The Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office / AP)

This photo provided by St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office shows Chanel Skains.

This photo provided by St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office shows Britney Keith

This photo provided by St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office shows Derrick Smith.


This photo provided by St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office shows Teniecha Bright

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — At least some of the seven people arrested in a fatal shootout with Louisiana deputies have been linked to violent anarchists on the FBI's domestic terrorism watch lists, a sheriff said Saturday.

Detectives had been monitoring the group before Thursday's shootout in Laplace in which two deputies were killed and two more wounded, said DeSoto Parish Sheriff Rodney Arbuckle. His detectives and other law enforcement discovered the suspects were heavily armed adherents to an ideology known as the "sovereign citizens" movement.

The FBI has classified "sovereign citizens" as people who believe they are free from all duties of a U.S. citizen, like paying taxes. The FBI considers the group's members a danger for making threats to judges and law enforcement, using fake currency and impersonating police officers.

The seven suspects have been charged in the shooting of Deputy Michael Scott Boyington, who survived. But authorities have said murder charges are pending.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said it was investigating the killings but declined to comment Saturday and referred questions to the Louisiana State Police, the lead investigating agency.
Arrested were the group's apparent leader, 44-year-old Terry Smith, his wife, Chanel Skains, 37, and his two sons, Derrick Smith, 22, and Brian Lyn Smith, 24. Also arrested were Brittney Keith, the girlfriend of Brian Smith; Kyle David Joekel, 28, and a woman living with him, 21-year-old Teniecha Bright.

Brian Smith was charged with attempted first-degree murder and the others with related charges.

Detectives in Tennessee, Nebraska and Louisiana have sketched a portrait of an outlaw gang led by a 44-year-old accused molester named Terry Smith, who has a criminal record dating to 1984 in Morehouse Parish, the Times-Picayune reported Saturday.

Morehouse Parish Sheriff Mike Stubbs said the Smith family was notorious. He said they lived for a long time in a house on the outskirts of Bastrop.

"We had a good bit of dealings with them," he said. He said the Smith brothers had been involved in theft and drugs.

Arbuckle, reached by telephone by The Associated Press, said his deputies had the group under surveillance and considered them armed and dangerous before they suddenly left his parish about two months ago. He said they had set up camp at a mobile home park while they working at an International Paper plant.

The sheriff said deputies became suspicious after they investigated a reported burglary in May at the park's laundry. The detectives discovered members wanted under warrants issued in Tennessee, Nebraska and Louisiana.

"Once we had them on our radar we started doing research on them," he said. Arbuckle said his detectives monitored the group until they left in November.

Sovereign citizens are a loosely organized movement founded in the 1970s and more fully developed in the 1980s, according to the Anti-Defamation League website. Sovereign citizens believe that all levels of government have no jurisdiction over them and resist — sometimes with violence — authority including police, the website said.

They also like to use what is dubbed "paper terrorism." It involves using frivolous lawsuits and fake documents and of using genuine documents such as IRS forms to intimidate, harass and coerce public officials, law enforcement officers and private citizens.

Arbuckle said his detectives could easily have been the victims instead of the St. John the Baptist Parish deputies killed and wounded. Deputies Brandon Nielsen and Jeremy Triche were killed and along with Boyington, Jason Triche was wounded. The Triches were somehow related, authorities said.

"We understand they had some pretty good firepower," Arbuckle said. "This very well could have been us" in the gunfight, he said.

He said the group traveled the country in trailers doing construction work and possessed a stockpile of weapons.

They were arrested after an early morning assault on Boyington led to the deadly shootout in the mobile home park in Laplace, a suburb west of New Orleans. Boyington was shot at the entrance of a parking lot used by contract workers on a job at a nearby oil refinery. He was working off-duty on a security detail at the lot.

Shortly thereafter, the other deputies were shot at the trailer park where a car involved in the first shooting was spotted.
Joekel and Brian Smith were hospitalized with gunshot wounds and will be jailed once they are out of the hospital. The others were jailed with bonds ranging from $350,000 to $750,000.
The Gage County, Neb., Sheriff's Office website listed Joekel among its most wanted fugitives, saying he is accused of making "terroristic threats" to patrons of a Nebraska bar and law enforcement officials.

Sgt. Len Marie, a state police spokesman, said investigators were amassing evidence. He said the agency had received the reports from the DeSoto sheriff and other law enforcement agencies in other states. He said the FBI and Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms was involved.

He said it was too early to verify links to the extremist groups associated with the sovereign citizen movement.
"We are confident that we have the people responsible for this in custody," Marie said.

Read more: Suspects in deputy killings linked to extremists - Times Union