Iberia deputies bust burglary ring

The prolific gang of burglars that apparently did its homework before hitting rural residences in the Nina area of St. Martin Parish might have been tripped up by that very thoroughness last week.
Iberia Parish Sheriff Louis Ackal said that similar burglaries in his parish occasioned his investigators to set up surveillance of likely targets, and on Friday, Dec. 18, deputies on stakeout saw two men acting as though they were casing homes on David Braquet Drive.
It’s a small rural neighborhood between Loreauville and Coteau Holmes much like the scattered residences near Henderson where, according to the incoming St. Martin Parish Council representative from the area, Chris Tauzin, at least nine burglaries occurred over a four-day period and within a two-mile radius.
The Iberia deputies’ suspicions were bolstered by the actions of the two men as they were approached for questioning. Deputies said they took off and led a high-speed chase into Loreauville where they crashed their vehicle in a ditch on C Street and fled on foot, only to be apprehended in short order.
The suspects were identified as David Lee Jr., 18 of New Iberia, and Kenneth Broussard, 19. His address is given by IPSO as the 600 block of Dugas Rd., St. Martinville.
The investigation led to St. Martin Parish where SMSO deputies arrested a third suspect, Colby Francois, 20, of the 1200 block of Francois Rd., north of St. Martinville.
Deputies also discovered in a St. Martin Parish residence, the location of which is not clear, a cache of guns, electronic devices, tools and other items deemed to be property taken in the recent burglaries in St. Martin and Iberia parishes.
The case remains under investigation as part of this joint effort between Iberia and St. Martin sheriff’s offices and more arrest are expected, Ackal said.
St. Martin Parish Councilman-elect Tauzin said the burglars in his area seemed to favor homes with carports or drives behind the homes where they could park unseen and kick in a back door.
“They hit pretty fast, too,” Tauzin said. “In and out in just a few minutes.”
He said one victim, alerted at his work by a home alarm system, called a relative who lived within sight of the burglarized home, yet the intruders were gone by the time he got there.
They were smart, young (if the deputies indeed have their men) and dangerous. Residents on Nursery Highway returned to not only find their home burglarized but their pet bulldog, who was locked in a kennel, shot to death, Tauzin said.
Last week, before the arrests, the St. Martin Parish Sheriff’s Office put out a news release noting that “during the holidays, we traditionally see an increase in home burglaries, particularly daytime burglaries,” and urging residents to watch for certain suspicious activity:
•Strange vehicles with multiple passengers;
•An increase in vehicular or pedestrian traffic in your neighborhood;
•Vehicles driving slowly or turning into driveways;
•Vehicles backing into a driveway or parked close to a residence.
SMSO public affairs officer Maj. Ginny Higgins said the office will soon be beefing up its night patrols in the upper part of the parish to eight deputies. Currently there are six deputies on patrol at any time day or night, she said.
Anyone interested in forming a Neighborhood Watch should call Deputy Troy Dupuis at (337) 394-2604.