St. Rose man robbed at gunpoint while heading to apartment

The holiday season did not get off to a good start for a 34-year-old St. Rose man, who was robbed at gunpoint as he headed towards his apartment just three days before Christmas.

At 9:38 p.m. on Dec. 22, the victim was near his apartment on E. Club Drive when he was approached by a black male wearing a hooded jacket, a white shirt and a white cloth partially covering his face. The robber then brandished a firearm and demanded the victim's money. After making off with an undetermined amount of cash, the robber fled the scene.

The victim told sheriff's officials that the robber was not alone and actually had other individuals with him. Those other individuals also had white cloths covering their faces.

The incident is still under investigation and the St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Department urges anyone with information to call 985-783-6807.

To increase a person's chances of surviving an armed robbery, Paul Simmons, a security manager for PSG Australia, says to follow these steps:

- Remain calm

- Appear submissive and compliant: obeying the armed robber without question can improve personal safety

- Assist the police by recording all the details, including a description of the offender and statements from witnesses

- Be careful about how the offender is observed, for example avoid direct eye contact

It's also important to help the sheriff's department as much as possible by trying to remember the following:

- The time of the offense

- The time the offender left the premises

- The weapon/s used or implied

- A description of the offender

- What the offender took

- Any evidence at the scene

- The direction the offender left in

- Any transportation the offender used including type, make, model, color, registration and number of occupants

In another holiday incident, which took place on Dec. 24, 47-year-old Kevin Daggs, of 16683 LA 631, Des Allemands was arrested for aggravated battery, aggravated assault and simple battery. Daggs allegedly got into an altercation with his live-in girlfriend in which he struck her in the mouth and attempted to strike her with a shovel.