By ROBIN SHANNON

L’Observateur

 

LAPLACE – A suspect wanted in connection with an early morning double shooting on New Year’s Eve in Edgard that killed a 35-year-old Hahnville man and injured a 34-year-old Edgard woman was arrested Monday.

Patrick Johnson, 25, of Edgard, surrendered to authorities just before 10:30 a.m. Monday at the St. John Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division, said Capt. Dane Clement, a spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office. Clement said Johnson is accused of murdering Henry Strickland, 35, of Hahnville, and injuring a 34-year-old Edgard woman whose name has not been released, during a shooting inside an Edgard nightclub Dec. 31.

According to a release from the Sheriff’s Office, management at the Hot Spot Lounge, located at 104 Bailey Lane, called 911 at about 12:20 a.m. Dec. 31 after gunshots were fired inside the club. Clement said deputies arrived and found Strickland with a gunshot wound to the abdomen and the woman with a gunshot wound to the left thigh. Both victims were taken to St. James Parish Hospital in Lutcher.

Clement said the woman was treated for her injuries and has been released from the hospital. Strickland, however, was transported to University Hospital in New Orleans, where he was pronounced dead.

Clement said Johnson has prior arrests in St. John Parish, but could not elaborate. He said the Sheriff’s Office had received calls in the past from the nightclub regarding crowd control issues, but nothing more serious than that has been reported.

Johnson was booked into the Sherman Walker Correctional Facility in LaPlace on charges of second-degree murder, aggravated battery, simple battery and possession of a firearm on the premises of an alcoholic beverage outlet. He was also booked on an unrelated warrant for theft of a firearm. His bond information was not available.