Burglary weapon could shed light on attempted murder case

Damian Blanks, 22, was arrested on Aug. 30 and charged with possession of a stolen firearm and felon carrying an illegal weapon. That weapon could prove useful to both police and the district attorney’s office.

Blanks’ last arrest came on April 15 when he and two other men were accused of attempted murder. A 25-year-old St. Rose man was shot numerous times in a drive-by shooting in the Preston Hollow neighborhood in St. Rose and Blanks was arrested for the crime and held on a $300,000 bond. He was later released when the charges were refused by the district attorney’s office for lack of evidence.

Sgt. Dwayne LaGrange, public information officer with the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office, said Blanks was caught with the weapon during a burglary.

"We are looking at the weapon right now to see if it can be connected to any other crimes," LaGrange said.

District Attorney Joel Chaisson also said his office will be looking into the weapon found on Blanks as well.

"I’m sure my assistants will be looking into all aspects of this," Chaisson said. "We’ve tried to connect several guns we’ve had an opportunity to look at and I’m sure that will be one of them as well."

In a statement when Blanks was last released, Chaisson wrote that there had been a number of senseless shootings in residential neighborhoods.

"Witness cooperation is essential to the successful prosecution of these cases so I encourage any citizens having information regarding these crimes to fully cooperate with my staff and the police so that we can bring the criminals committing these acts to justice," Chaisson wrote.

Those with information on any unsolved crimes are asked to contact the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office at (985)783-6807 or Crime Stoppers at 1-877-903-STOP.