BATON ROUGE, La. – The Latest on a string of attacks in Louisiana that left three people dead and a fourth wounded. (all times local):
2:30 p.m.
A neighbor of a Louisiana man charged in the slayings of three people in a string of attacks dating back to July says she never felt uncomfortable around him.
Traci Andes has lived next door to Ryan Sharpe for roughly a dozen years. Their homes are set back in a wooded area off a rural road in Clinton. Andes said Thursday that they chatted occasionally, and she last saw him a week ago when he stopped by to borrow her husband's welding helmet.
Authorities say four days later, Sharpe shot a Boy Scouts employee while he trimmed weeds in front of his house in Clinton.
Andes said after that shooting, she told her husband she would bring her gun outside the next time he cut their grass and stand watch over the street that runs past their home. She says everyone has been on high alert because of the shootings.
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7:30 a.m.
Authorities in Louisiana have arrested a man in connection with four shootings since July in the same area, including a Boy Scout employee who was shot and killed Monday near the camp where he worked.
The Advocate reports that authorities announced during a news conference Wednesday night that 36-year-old Ryan Sharpe of Clinton will be charged with three counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted first-degree murder. East Baton Rouge Sheriff Sid Gautreaux would not comment on a motive in the shootings or say whether the suspect knew the victims.
In the most recent shooting, 48-year-old Brad DeFranceschi was shot multiple times about 11:15 a.m. Monday in front of his house on camp property, East Feliciana Parish Sheriff Jeff Travis said.
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Information from: The Advocate, http://theadvocate.com
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