St. John sheriff seeks leads after 16-year-old girl killed in ambush Sunday on reservation

RESERVE, La. (WVUE) – After the murder of a 16-year-old girl early Sunday (June 2) in Reserve, in what St. John Parish authorities say appears to be a “targeted” killing, detectives are looking for leads from the public.

“They do not deserve to be on the streets of St. John Parish or any street in our state or our country,” said St. John Sheriff Mike Tregre. “We have to get them. We must capture them.

The St. John Sheriff's Office identified the victim as Aariah Henry of the Reserve. The agency said the teen was shot in the hip shortly after 2 a.m. on Airline Highway near Central Avenue on the reservation. Surveillance video showed the victim's car being shot at by another vehicle that pulled up alongside and opened fire as they drove along.

After the drive-by shooting, Henry was rushed to St. James Hospital for emergency treatment but died from her injuries, authorities said.

“After receiving witness statements and reviewing body camera footage, it appears to be a specifically targeted attack,” the St. John Sheriff's Office said in a statement. “Detectives have no leads at this time.”

Sheriff Mike Tregre said Henry was in a car with two other minor girls and three adult men, following a party in a nearby neighborhood. Tregre said it appears the group or someone who was part of it was targeted, as video surveillance showed the suspects' car parked on a dark street near the party and then following the other car until A gas station. The suspects waited at the scene again before accelerating to catch up with the other vehicle at the intersection where the gunfire erupted, Tregre said.

“All three adult males refused to cooperate with law enforcement at all. They didn’t want to talk to us,” Tregre said. “Everything we have right now is based on our technology and our crime cameras.”

Tregre said the suspects' car was found at the end of a dead-end street, hidden under a tarp. The car had been reported stolen in New Orleans in March, he said.

“You really have to know the area to park a vehicle there,” Tregre said. “They do not deserve to be on the streets of St. John Parish or any street in our state or our country. We have to get them. We must capture them.

Anyone with information about the homicide is asked to call Capt. Brandon Barlow of the agency's Criminal Investigation Division at (504) 494-2674.

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