Alleged murderer caught in Abbeville

At approximately 9 a.m. Friday 28-year-old Jamal James Carmouche was arrested by members of the US Marshals Fugitive Task Force with critical assistance from the Abbeville Police Department.

Carmouche was wanted by the Lafayette Police Department for a murder that occurred during the early morning hours of Sept. 18 where the victim, Marcus Despaine sustained gunshot wounds.

On Sept. 21, after securing a warrant against Carmouche, the Lafayette Police Department requested the assistance of the Western District of Louisiana’s Fugitive Task Force (WDLA) in Lafayette. TFO’s alongside Lafayette Police Detectives, Abbeville Police Detectives, and members of the Vermilion Parish Sheriff’s Office have been working diligently in an effort to locate Carmouche who ignored calls from detectives requesting him to come in for an interview.

Solid information was developed early this morning that ultimately led to Carmouche’s arrest at 407 South Baily in Abbeville. Carmouche will eventually be booked today at the Lafayette Parish Correctional Center.

Henry Whitehorn, the United States Marshal for the Western District of Louisiana, said, “The coordinated effort of all law enforcement to bring dangerous criminals to justice ensures that the streets and neighborhoods of Louisiana are a safer place to raise our children.”

The Western District of Louisiana’s Fugitive Task Force (WDLA) in Lafayette is a team comprised of full-time law enforcement officers from the Lafayette City Marshals, Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office, Lafayette Police Department, St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office, and Louisiana Probation and Parole. Further, WDLA calls upon part-time TFO’s throughout its eight parish area. In 2009 WDLA in Lafayette closed approximately 600 Warrants, most of which were violent felony offenses. US Marshals Task Forces throughout the United States arrested more than 73,000 state and local fugitives on felony charges.

Additional information about the U.S. Marshals can be found at http://www.usmarshals.gov.

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