Hammond, LA (5/8/2023) – The Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office (TPSO) reported the arrest of an 18-year-old in connection with the shooting of an Arkansas resident.
Ladarrius Evans, 18, of Hammond, Louisiana, was arrested and booked into the Tangipahoa Parish Jail on the following charges: (1) count – 1st Degree Murder; (1) count – Carjacking; (1) count – Possession of Unidentifiable Firearm (1) count – Armed Robbery with a Firearm; and (1) count – Possession of a Machine Gun.
Shortly before 8 AM, Saturday, May 6, 2023, TPSO Deputies responded to the Red Roof Plus on Puma Drive in Hammond after it was reported a person had been shot. Upon arrival, deputies located 62-year-old Paul Holt of Arkansas with a gunshot wound to the chest.
Deputies quickly learned Holt was carjacked and shot while he and his wife entered their vehicle. The investigation further revealed Holt and his wife were approached by an armed, masked subject, later identified as Evans, who entered the vehicle and attempted to leave with Holt’s wife in the passenger seat.
Holt attempted to stop Evans and successfully aided his wife’s escape. While doing so, Evans shot Holt, who was unarmed and fled in the stolen SUV. Holt subsequently succumbed to his injuries while at North Oaks Hospital.
Investigators located the vehicle later in the day and, through investigatory means, developed Evans as the suspect. Upon locating Evans, he not only confessed to the crime but was found to have items belonging to the victims and the clothing and other items used to perpetrate the murder and carjacking. Included in those items was a “Ghost Gun” with a Glock Switch.
Holt and his wife had traveled to Louisiana as part of a birthday celebration, where Holt was to turn 63 on Sunday.
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A law enforcement-related agency has provided this information as public information. Persons named or shown in photographs or video as suspects in a criminal “All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty.” or arrested and charged with a crime have not been convicted of any criminal offense. They are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
