Source The Advocate, Baton Rouge, La.
A Lafayette police officer has died as a result of injuries sustained during a hostage-taking and standoff Thursday in Jeanerette.
The Lafayette Police Department confirmed the death but did not name the officer. (Editor's note: The officer has been identified as Senior Cpl. Segus Jolivette, who had been with the department for over a decade, the agency stated in a social media post. Joining the department in November 2013, Jolivette was a member of the SWAT negotiator team and had served as a school resource officer.)
The deceased officer, a SWAT team member with Lafayette police, and three others were injured Thursday afternoon while assisting the Jeanerette Marshal's Office and other area law enforcement agencies.
A police department spokesperson said two officers, including the deceased officer, were shot, and bullet fragments struck the other two officers.
The three injured officers are in good condition with non-life-threatening injuries. The names of the officers also have not been released.
The officer's death is the first line-of-duty death the department has suffered since the fatal shooting in October 2017 of Cpl. Michael Middlebrook.
A suspect is in custody and no longer a threat, Trooper Peggy Bourque, public information officer with Louisiana State Police Troop I, said Thursday evening.
Several news agencies, citing unnamed sources, identified the suspect as 31-year-old Nyjal Hurst.
Hurst, in 2014, then 21 years old and living in Jeanerette, was wanted for attempted first-degree murder in a drive-by shooting in the 300 block of Belle Place Oliveria Road, according to a news release from the Iberia Parish Sheriff's Office.
He also was arrested in Lafayette Parish in July 2023 and indicted on felony charges of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine; possession of cocaine; possession of a firearm, a 9mm handgun, with obliterated serial number; possession of a weapon in the presence of a controlled dangerous substance; possession of a firearm by a convicted felon; and the misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest.
Detectives with the Louisiana State Police Criminal Investigations Division were asked just after 4:30 p.m. Thursday to investigate the Jeanerette incident as an officer-involved shooting, Bourque said.
Authorities confirmed LPD SWAT, along with several other law enforcement agencies, were assisting a standoff about 10 a.m. Thursday in the 2500 block of Martin Luther King Boulevard in Jeanerette.
The Jeanerette Marshall's Office had attempted to serve a warrant at the address. The man went back into his home before taking two people inside hostage.
"Our primary concern is the safety and well-being of our officers," Jamie Boudreaux, chief communications officer, Lafayette Consolidated Government, said in a news release. "We are committed to keeping the public informed as more information becomes available. Please join me in prayer for these officers, their families, and all those affected by this incident."
Investigators are gathering information, Bourque siad Thursday evening. The Louisiana State Police Crime Lab will be processing the scene. This is an active investigation. Additional information will be released when it becomes available.
Anyone with information, photographs or video is urged to share it with state police detectives. You may anonymously report information through the Louisiana State Police online reporting system by visiting lsp.org and clicking on Report Suspicious or Criminal Activity or calling the LSP Fusion Center Hotline at 1-800-434-8007.
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