By ROBIN SHANNON

Staff Reporter

LAPLACE – St. John the Baptist Sheriff’s deputies arrested a 20-year old LaPlace man who is accused of firing on a couple as they sat inside a vehicle parked outside a home on West 3rd Street early Tuesday morning, said a spokesman for the office.

Maj. Mike Tregre, a spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office, said Josh Lee Wilson, 20, 466 Elm St., LaPlace, was arrested at his home around 9:15 a.m. Tuesday, after being positively identified as a shooter in the incident that occurred about eight hours earlier. Authorities would not disclose whether or not any weapons were found on Wilson at the time of the arrest.

Police reports regarding the incident said one or two other suspects are involved in the shooting, and investigators are still trying to attain identification of the other shooters.

According to Tregre, deputies were called out to a home at 141 W 3rd St., around 12:50 a.m. Tuesday. Upon arrival, officers found a 30-year-old LaPlace woman lying on the ground with gunshot wounds to the middle and lower back, as well as the back of her head.

While investigating the incident, Tregre said officers also discovered that a 28-year-old LaPlace man had arrived at River Parishes Hospital with gunshot wounds to the left shoulder blade and back area. Investigation revealed the man had been shot in relation to the same incident as the female.

Tregre said the victims were sitting in a parked vehicle outside the home of a relative, when two or three suspects approached them and began firing handguns at the car.

Tregre said the man was treated for his injuries and released the same day. He said the woman was taken by ambulance to East Jefferson Hospital in Metairie. Her condition was unknown as of press time.

Wilson, who was arrested earlier this year on charges of indecent exposure related to St. John’s recent saggy pants ban, was booked into the Sherman Walker Correctional Facility on two counts of first-degree murder along with one count of distributing and manufacturing of a Schedule II controlled dangerous substance. Tregre said Wilson’s bond was set at $530,000.

Tregre said no clear motive has been determined in the shooting. He said the man might have known the shooter, but it is unclear how Wilson and the man might be related.

Tregre said anyone with any information regarding the shooting is asked to contact the St. John Sheriff’s Office at (985) 652-9514, or Crimestoppers at (877) 903-7867.