Officials with the USDA are investigating the series of recent deaths at the Baton Rouge Zoo. Emelie Gunn has more…
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The LaSalle Parish Sheriff’s Office arrests two people in connection with the double homicide investigation in a small Louisiana town. Michelle Southern reports…:
CUT 2 (28) “I’m Michelle Southern”
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State Police announces the arrest of a Lafayette man who was allegedly traveling 150 miles per hour before crashing his 2016 Chevrolet Corvette and killing one person. Trooper Brooks David says 31-year-old Martin Nguyen was at the wheel when his vehicle ran off the road on April 18th on LA Highway 339 and it killed 30-year-old Hoang Nguyen of Lake Charles.
David says Martin Nguyen’s blood alcohol concentration was over the legal limit when the crash occurred.
David says Martin Nguyen was in the hospital being treated for injuries after the accident, but he has now been arrested and charged with vehicular homicide, speeding, reckless operation, and improper lane usage.
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Investigators from the U.S. Department of Agriculture are looking into the number of animal deaths that have recently occurred at the Baton Rouge Zoo. Curator Sam Winslow says they asked for the USDA and the American Zoo Association to send in officials to assess the situation after 18 animals have died in the last year…
Winslow says the 2-year-old Malayan tiger that died earlier in the month likely suffered from gastric dilation. He says her death was something you unfortunately can’t do anything about.
Two giraffes also recently died at the zoo. Winslow says they were 24 and 30-years-old. He says the normal life expectancy for a giraffe is about 13 years.
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Lafayette Congressman Charles Boustany introduces legislation that he believes will help lead to better detection of tornadoes in south Louisiana. Boustany’s bill would require a Doppler weather radar site to be built near Baton Rouge. The US Representative says last February’s tornado outbreak inspired him to author of this federal legislation…
There are detection sites near Slidell and Lake Charles, but none near Baton Rouge. Boustany says a new site will close the gap in radar coverage in Louisiana. He says he is looking into how much the radar site will cost, but he wanted to get the legislation introduced first.
There are also Doppler radars near Fort Polk and Shreveport. Boustany says a new radar detection site will ensure that Louisiana is better covered by weather radar to give citizens as much warning as possible to seek shelter or evacuate.
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A Grand Isle man has been arrested for attempting to purchase a child for sexual purposes. That’s according to State Police trooper Jesse Lagrange who says 30-year-old Wade Perkins asked someone to locate a 6 to 8-year-old child so Perkins could pay for a sexual encounter. Lagrange says that person then contacted police.
Lagrange says when Perkins met up with an undercover trooper, he was arrested for attempt and conspiracy to commit first-degree rape. Perkins is a registered sex offender in Michigan for criminal sexual conduct. Lagrange says they expect to file more charges against Perkins.
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A Bossier Parish Sheriff’s Deputy left his job with the Medium-Security Facility to play professional minor league baseball after discovering he can throw a 91 mile-per-hour-fast ball. 26-year-old Randy Zeigler was a pitcher for LSU and caught the eye of a Chicago White Sox scout. Zeigler says he’ll be playing for the Lincoln Nebraska Saltdogs.
Zeigler says he was just messing around with a radar gun, when he discovered he was throwing at the same speed he was three years ago. He says he’s excited to play baseball, but he’ll miss being a deputy in his hometown.
Lt. Billy Jones says he’s sad to lose such a dedicated employee, but is excited for Zeigler to do what he’s always had a passion for.