By LEONARD GRAY

HAHNVILLE – A total of six suspects have been arrested, with two additional arrests Monday, in the murder of LaPlace teen-ager James Lester “Jim” Rogers.

Last week’s story of a missing LaPlace teen-ager turned tragic when the body of Rogers was found beneath an Interstate 310 access ramp near St. Rose. Four arrests were made that same evening, according to St. Charles Parish Sheriff Greg C. Champagne.

Rogers, 17, the son of LaPlace veterinarian Dr. Wayne Rogers, was reported missing by his father when his son failed to return home Mardi Gras night. His funeral is set Thursday at 10 a.m. at First United Methodist Church in LaPlace. Visitation starts at 8 a.m.

The East St. John High School student left his residence at 8 p.m. on Mardi Gras to visit a neighbor, driving a white pickup truck. His father’s later inquiries turned up two other males, who his son reportedly dropped off at the “Old Time Saver” on Carrollwood Drive at 12:53 a.m.

Instead, by that time, Rogers was already beaten, choked and tossed off the I-310 access ramp after a disastrous visit to a three-hour party near Paradis.

St. John Parish Sheriff Wayne L. Jones called it “a senseless crime” during a joint press conference Saturday afternoon. His investigators, in questioning the two males supposedly dropped off at the convenience store turned up inconsistencies in their stories.

The two agencies got together, pooled their information and soon made four arrests:

• Calvin Couvillion, 21, of Old Spanish Trail, between Mozella and Paradis.

• Brandon Stein, 18, of 140 E. 12th St., Reserve.

• Tracy Caillett, 18, of 916 Gassen St., Luling.

• A 16-year-old LaPlace male.

Couvillion and Stein have each been charged with second-degree murder. Caillet was charged with being an accessory after the fact. The juvenile was charged as a curfew violator, with other charges likely.

Champagne added that “two or three more” arrests are anticipated of people who knew of the incident but failed to report it to police.

Couvillion and Stein are being held at the Nelson Coleman Correctional Center near Killona. Caillet has been released to the custody of her parents. The juvenile is being held at the St. James Youth Center near Donaldsonville.

Two more arrests were made Monday, both charged with being an accessory after the fact of second-degree murder:

• Terrel J. Gisclair, 17, 14882 Old Spanish Trail, Paradis.

• A 15-year-old Des Allemands female.

Gisclair is being held at the correctional center near Killona and the juvenile is being held at the St. James Youth Center, Capt. Patrick Yoes of the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office said. Both reportedly lied to investigators about their knowledge of the incident.

A search had been launched by the St. John Parish Sheriff’s Office for the missing Rogers who, as it developed, met with Stein and the juvenile, Stein’s cousin, at about 8:45 p.m. He gave the pair a ride to Couvillion’s residence, where the party-goers indulged in beer and marijuana. Around midnight, Rogers was ready to leave, but Stein and his cousin were not ready to go and an argument ensued. According to Champagne, Stein removed his leather belt and choked Rogers with it, dragging him back into the house. Inside, Rogers was brutally beaten to unconsciousness.

Rogers was 5-feet-7-inches and 140 pounds, according to a missing-person flyer issued by the St. John Parish Sheriff’s Office. Stein is 6-feet-3-inches and 155 pounds, while Couvillion is 6-feet-4-inches and 175 pounds, according to the incident report.

Champagne continued that Stein, Couvillion and the juvenile then reportedly bundled Rogers in a sheet and blanket and put him in the bed of a pickup truck, throwing a mattress on top of him. They then headed back to LaPlace and stopped on a ramp of I-310 to throw Rogers over the side in a 60-foot drop to the marsh beneath.

An autopsy report is awaited to tell investigators whether Rogers died from the beating itself, from the 60-foot fall or from lying in the marsh for nearly three days.

The suspects then allegedly abandoned Rogers’ truck in Park Place Subdivision in LaPlace, after removing all his stereo equipment.

Persistent interviewing of the juvenile resulted in a break in the case around 4 p.m. Friday. St. Charles detectives were called, and another search launched. This resulted in Rogers’ body being located at 5:30 p.m. and the arrests followed. Stein was located on Central Avenue in Reserve, using a pay phone and trying to dodge police searchers, Jones said.

Jones was an old friend of Dr. Rogers, as they were elementary-school classmates. “He came from a very loving family,” Jones added. “But the family feared the worst.”