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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
FOR INFORMATION CONTACT: |
August 22, 2008 |
Doug Farrell, Public Affairs Officer
(504) 915-3110 |
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U.S. Marshals Arrest St. Charles Fugitive
Rapist in New Orleans |
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On August 21, 2008, at approximately 9:00 p.m.,
the U.S. Marshals Service - Eastern District of Louisiana (E/LA) Crescent
Star Fugitive Task Force (CSFTF) arrested David Wedge in the 3100 block of
Ursuline Street, New Orleans, Louisiana. St. Charles Parish investigators
allege that Wedge, 28, kidnapped, raped, and beat a woman earlier this
month. Wedge had additional warrants for battery by the St. Charles Parish
Sheriff’s Office and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office.
St. Charles Parish detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Wedge on August
13, 2008, and referred the case to the U.S. Marshals Crescent Star Fugitive
Task Force. Deputies in New Orleans developed information that Wedge was
hiding in or near the French Quarter. After scouring the area for days,
investigators discovered Wedge had rented a room on Ursuline Street. He was
apprehended without incident and was booked into the Orleans Parish Prison
on the above mentioned charges where he awaits extradition to St. Charles
Parish.
U.S. Marshal Michael Credo stated, “This is the second aggravated rape
suspect our Task Force has arrested this week. It highlights the U.S.
Marshals commitment to taking dangerous sexual offenders off our streets and
provide for a safer community”.
The U.S. Marshals Service EDLA sponsored CSFTF established itself in 1999
and is currently receiving extra support from the U.S. Attorney General and
U.S. Department of Justice to fight post Hurricane Katrina violent crime and
locate sexual predators in the New Orleans metro area. Current CSFTF members
include the New Orleans Police Department, Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff’s
Office, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s
Office, Louisiana Probation and Parole, and the U.S. Border Patrol. Other
New Orleans metro area law enforcement agencies participating on a case by
case basis include: St. Bernard Parish Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Immigration
and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Social Security OIG.
For more information on the U.S. Marshals
EDLA CSFTF go to
www.usmarshals.gov/district/la-e/news/index.html. |
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