St. Landry Attempted Murder Suspect Arrested

An alert off-duty sheriff's deputy is credited with helping Opelousas police catch an attempted murder suspect.

Desmond Richard was arrested over the weekend on attempted second-degree murder and gun charges. As of Monday, he remains in jail.

Police Chief Martin McLendon says the off-duty deputy spotted Richard and called police to tell them of Richard's location. Police found the car Richard was driving, pulled him over, and arrested him. Police say they found a stolen gun in Richard's possession while executing the arrest.

In addition to the attempted murder and gun charges, Richard also faces traffic citations.