By ROBIN SHANNON
Staff Reporter

LAPLACE – Authorities in St. John said Thursday they have apprehended a 29-year-old man accused of killing a Reserve woman following a botched robbery late last month, after the suspect failed to appear in court in St. Charles Parish.

Lt. Dane Clement, public information officer for the St. John Sheriff’s Office, said deputies in St. Charles tracked down Terrel Hutchinson, 204 Homewood Place, Reserve, after Hutchinson did not show up for a scheduled court appearance on an unrelated matter. Clement said Hutchinson has been wanted since Jan. 9 in connection with the shooting death of 27-year-old Nekesha Nichelle Joseph.

Clement said Hutchinson is one of three men that have been identified as suspects in the shooting. A warrant was issued for Livingston Parish resident Calvin Mitchell, 22, around the same time as Hutchinson’s, and a third warrant for 20-year-old Jules Roberson was issued late Thursday.

Clement said Roberson, whose address is the same as Hutchinson’s, is a brother of Hutchinson. Roberson is described as a thin build, medium skin-toned black male with a thin mustache. Although Roberson was photographed with long hair, Clement said the suspect no longer has the dreadlocks from the photo.

According to reports from the Sherilff’s Office, Hutchinson, Roberson and Mitchell are suspected of firing several shots at a vehicle after the men attempted to rob the car’s occupants at gunpoint. Joseph, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, was hit multiple times and pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the vehicle, Ron James, 36, of Garyville, suffered gunshot wounds to the leg and was treated and released from River Parishes Hospital.

Clement said Hutchinson, who was identified in a photographic lineup, was booked into the Sherman Walker Correctional Facility in LaPlace on charges of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder. He remains in jail in lieu of $250,000 bond set by Judge Sterling Snowdy.

Authorities are still on the lookout for Mitchell, who has family ties to the area and Roberson. Both should be considered armed and dangerous. Anyone with information on Mitchell’s whereabouts should contact the St. John Sheriff’s Office at 985-652-6338.