State Police release photos of truck used in fatal LaPlace hit & run
Published 10:18 am Friday, December 1, 2017
LAPLACE — Louisiana State Police continue to release new suspect vehicle information a week after a gruesome hit-and-run collision on Airline Highway claimed the life of a LaPlace pedestrian.
On Friday morning, Troop B authorities said additional photos of the suspect vehicle showed it had Louisiana license plate X444666.
“This license plate is not registered to the suspect vehicle,” a State Police release said. “It is possible that a different license plate may be attached to the vehicle at this time. The pick-up truck is unique and has a different color tailgate and there is a significant difference in paint colors on the sides of the vehicle.”
Those with information about the vehicle’s whereabouts or the driver are asked to contact Troop B at 504-471-2775.
Troopers previously said the suspect vehicle that killed Eugene Webber III Saturday evening was a 1988-2000 model Chevrolet pick-up that would have damage on the driver’s side headlight and amber signal light. The suspect vehicle also has a toolbox mounted across the bed of the truck.
Police said the wreck occurred at approximately 6 p.m. near the intersection of Airline Highway and Jaubert Lane in LaPlace while Webber was walking north across Airline Highway.
Preliminary investigation revealed Webber was in the left lane on the westbound side of Airline Highway when a truck struck him.
The victim was knocked onto Airline Highway’s eastbound lane, where he was struck again. State Police said the driver of the second vehicle stopped following impact, cooperated fully with authorities and is not facing charges.
Webber died on the scene.
Family members described Webber as an electrician, who loved to fish and shoot pool.
A family man who didn’t have children of his own, according to cousin Tracy Scott, Webber came from a close-knit family and was always “a great uncle to his nieces and nephews.”
“He had a wonderful sense of humor and a big heart,” Scott said. “He would give you the shirt off his back. He was just very well loved and well liked by everyone. He never met a stranger. He had a fantastic smile.”