ERIK SANZENBACH / L’Observateur / April 5, 2000

LAPLACE – An armed robbery ended in the murder of a 15-year-old boy on Monday night, according to the St. John Parish Sheriff’s Office.Capt. Mike Tregre reported that two teen-agers were robbed by two armedmen on Michael Court, then taken to the Belle Terre exit to Interstate 10 where one of the boys was shot.

Tregre said that at 9:46 p.m. Monday, the police got a call about a somebodybeing hit by a car at Highway 51 and I-10. When deputies responded, they didnot find anything. They went over to the Belle Terre Blvd. entrance to I-10and they found the body of 15-year-old Joshua Sanders of LaPlace.

Acadian ambulance was called and the EMTs discovered two bullet wounds to Sander’s body. One to the upper right torso and one to the left arm.Sanders was transported to River Parishes Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival.

Sanders was a seventh-grader at Leon Godchaux Junior High and lived in the Sugar Ridge subdivision.

While investigating the shooting on the Belle Terre exit, police received a call at 9:57 from a resident in the Belle Terre subdivision saying that a young man was knocking on their door saying that he had been shot at.

The police went and got the young man and he told the police what had happened.

According to the unidentified witness, he was sitting in his car that was parked on Michael Court and talking to his friend, Sanders who was standing outside the car. The two young men were approached by two black males.Both men had hoods pulled over their heads and blue bandannas across the bottom part of their faces.

“The witness told us that he could only see the robber’s eyes,” said Tregre.

One of the attackers had a handgun and ordered Sanders to get into the car.

Then they ordered Sanders and his friend to hand over all their valuables.

They told the witness to drive to LA 3188 which is the Belle Terre exit to I- 10 where the robbers ordered both boys out of the car. They started firingat the victims, and Sanders was hit.

Shortly after finding Sanders, the police found the witness’s car abandoned behind the new Winn-Dixie on Airline Highway. Police believe the gunmen stoleanother car after abandoning the the witness’s car.

The witness describes the first assailant as a black male, 5 foot 8 inches tall, 150 pounds with a black hooded jacket and a blue bandanna. The secondrobber is also a black male, six feet tall, 170 pounds also with a black hooded jacket and a blue bandanna.

Relatives of Sanders have set up a fund at the Hibernia Bank to help the Sanders family with the cost of the funeral. If anyone wishes to donatemoney, they can ask that the money be put in the Cynthia Munoz Tribute Fund for Joshua Sanders. Cynthia Munoz is Sander’s’ aunt and twin sister toSanders’ mother.

A family friend, Yvonne Govostis says everyone in the neighborhood is shaken to the core by the murder.

“There is a lot of anger in the community,” Govostis said, “This was just so senseless.” The murder and robbery are still under investigation, and anybody with any information is asked to call Det. Sgt. Royal Burke at the St. John Sheriff’sOffice at 652-2773 or call Crimestoppers at 1-877-903-7867 or 822-1111.

Crimestoppers is offering a $1,000 reward.

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