The owners of the stolen truck that was used in last week's double shooting in the Central Business District are demanding answers from the New Orleans Police Department. That couple told our partners at NOLA.com that police found the truck in New Orleans East before the shooting happened, but the couple said instead of recovering the truck, police placed a GPS device on it to track it.
However, one law enforcement expert says the NOPD had a good reason for their decision.
"The police are, at that time, investigating that case as a property crime--a theft," Metropolitan Crime Commission president and CEO Rafael Goyeneche said, adding that the NOPD tracked the vehicle to make sure they could arrest the suspects and recover the truck in as safe a location as possible. "The police department, not knowing what the intention was of the people who had stolen that truck, were monitoring that truck looking for a better opportunity to pull it over."
According to Goyeneche, NOPD officers would have unwittingly put themselves in danger if they had tried to stop the truck on Wednesday.
"If they had attempted to pull that vehicle over in the CBD, knowing what we know now, there could have been a shootout between police and the suspects in that truck," Goyeneche said. "The police were erring on the side of caution."
Goyeneche adds that the NOPD's decision to track the truck was one most likely made with the public's safety in mind. Specifically, Goyeneche says the NOPD would have put the public in danger if they would have tried to recover the truck in a heavily-populated area.
"If the truck was driving in the Central Business District, the police department is not going to try to apprehend those individuals in the CBD, whereas the potential if they attempt to engage that truck while they're in a traffic-congested area like the CBD, there's the potential that the suspects may flee in that truck at high speeds and endanger public safety," Goyeneche said. "The police department, not knowing what the intention was of the people who had stolen that truck, were monitoring that truck looking for a better opportunity to pull it over."
Goyeneche says he believes the NOPD will give the truck's owners and the public the answers they're seeking.
"I think that at some point in time, the police department will explain what they did and why they did it," Goyeneche said.
In a statement emailed to WWL First News about the investigation, NOPD said the following:
The NOPD is aware that there have been news stories released that used information obtained in court documents regarding the investigation that included the Jan. 17 shooting incident and subsequent arrests. Public safety, including the safety of our residents and visitors, is the NOPD’s top priority. Deployment of officers in police operations is handled utilizing tools such as analytics and other investigative measures. Speaking at length regarding tactical information can be counterproductive for investigators in both this and future investigations.
