3-18-16
A Buddhist monk accused of embezzling more than $200,000 from a Lafayette temple to feed a casino gambling habit has pleaded guilty to fraud. U.S. Attorney Stephanie Finley’s office says 36-year-old Khang Nguyen Le (kang wenn leh) will be sentenced June 27 after his guilty plea Thursday to one count of wire fraud. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. In a court filing, a federal agent said Le told investigators that he spent up to $10,000 playing blackjack during frequent trips to a Lake Charles casino.
THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS HALL IN VINTON HAS BEEN TURNED INTO A SHELTER FOR FLOOD VICTIMS. TERI SHIELDS, THE MISSIONS DIRECTOR FOR FRIEND SHIPS, TELLS KPLC TV THAT THEY WERE ASKED TO HELP OUT AT THE SHELTER. VOLUNTEERS FROM HIS ORGANIZATION AND MANY OTHERS ARE SORTING OUT DONATIONS FROM THE COMMUNITY, WHILE PROVIDING MEALS, CLOTHING AND BEDS. SHIELDS SAYS IT CAN BE CHALLENGING FOR THE VOLUNTEERS, BUT THEY HAVE TO BE STRONG FOR THOSE SUFFERING LOSS.
THE CLOSURE OF INTERSTATE TEN AT THE TEXAS STATE LINE IS AFFECTING TOURISM BUSINESS IN CALCASIEU PARISH. ERIC ZARTLER OF THE LAKE CHARLES SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA CONVENTION AND VISITOR’S BUREAU SAYS TWO BASEBALL TOURNAMENTS AND A SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT WERE CANCELED THIS WEEK. HE SAYS THOSE TOURNAMENTS WOULD HAVE BROUGHT NEARLY 200 TEAMS TO THE AREA. ZARTLER SAYS HE’S CONCERNED THAT A SECOND CONSECUTIVE WEEK OF A BRIDGE CLOSURE WOULD HAVE A SEVERE IMPACT ON HOTEL STAYS.
Gov. John Bel Edwards says the severe storms that battered Louisiana are a “record-breaking flood event” that inundated places that have never flooded before.
Edwards thanked the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Thursday for promptly acting on the state’s requests to expand the number of parishes covered by a federal disaster declaration. Edwards and FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate met in Baton Rouge for a briefing on the flooding. Mike Steele, a spokesman for the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, says roughly 21,000 people were evacuated and between 11,000 and 12,000 homes have been damaged in Louisiana.
A MAN AND WOMAN FROM EUNICE, ACCUSED IN THE SHOOTING OF A 22-YEAR-OLD EUNICE MAN, WERE EXTRADITED FROM TEXAS TO LOUISIANA THIS WEEK, ACCORDING TO POLICE CHIEF RANDY FONTENOT. 22-YEAR-OLD PHILLIP LAFLEUR AND 21-YEAR-OLD CANDACE VIDRINE WERE ARRESTED IN SAN ANGELO, TEXAS LAST MONTH AFTER LEADING POLICE ON A HIGH SPEED CHASE. LAFLEUR IS BELIEVED TO HAVE SHOT AND KILLED AKEEM CAESAR, LEAVING HIS BODY IN A WOODED AREA, AND VIDRINE IS BEING CHARGED AS AN ACCESSORY. HUNTERS FOUND CEASAR’S BODY IN EARLY FEBRUARY, MORE THAN A MONTH AFTER HE WAS REPORTED MISSING.
HOMES SALES IN LAFAYETTE WERE DOWN MORE THAN 16 PERCENT IN FEBRUARY COMPARED TO THE SAME MONTH LAST YEAR. HOWEVER, BILL BACQUE OF VAN EATON AND ROMERO SAYS HE’S ENCOURAGED BY THE NUMBER OF PENDING SALES. HOMES UNDER CONTRACT BUT NOT YET APPROVED WERE UP 18 PERCENT IN FEBRUARY. BACQUE TELLS THE ADVERTISER THAT THE LAFAYETTE ECONOMY IS CLEARING FEELING THE DECLINE, BUT HE’S CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC ABOUT 2016.
IN THE LAST MINUTE EFFORT TO PATCH UP THIS YEAR’S BUDGET GAP, LAWMAKERS AGREED TO REFINANCE STATE DEBT. JULIE DARCE HAS MORE.
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A MASSIVE FIRE IN ARNAUDVILLE DESTROYED A HOME AND A SHED AND DAMAGED ANOTHER HOME. NINE FIRE DEPARTMENTS RESPONDED TO THE EMERGENCY CALL AT AROUND TWO THIS MORNING IN THE 400 BLOCK OF OSCAR RIVETTE ROAD. WITNESSES TOLD KATC TV THAT THEY HEARD EXPLOSIONS COMING FROM THE SHED. THERE’S NO WORD YET ON IF ANYONE WAS IN THE HOME AND OFFICIALS ARE INVESTIGATING THE CAUSE.
