(HorizonPost.com) – One of the men arrested in connection to the shooting of a French Quarter tour guide in New Orleans in late June is an illegal alien who has been living in the United States for years.
Tour guide Kristie Thibodeaux was fatally shot in her vehicle in the early hours of June 30.
Three men were arrested in connection to her murder, including the shooter, Kevin Nunez, who at the time of her death, was wearing a deactivated ankle monitor and had a warrant out for his arrest.
Also arrested were Jerben Albarec, 17, and Joshua Bonifacio-Avila, 19. According to Immigrations and Customs Enforcement Bonifacio entered the US illegally but when and where is not known.
ICE said Bonifacio initially crossed the border in May 2019 but was deemed inadmissible. However, he ended up in Louisiana where he was subsequently arrested twice, first in October 2023 and again in February of this year.
After his arrest in connection with Thibodeaux’s death, ICE issued a detainer with the Justice Center in Orleans Parish.
In response to the news that one of the suspects was an illegal, Governor Jeff Landry called for the US borders to be closed, saying in a post on X that Bonifacio “should have never been in Louisiana.”
According to court records, Kevin Nunez was sentenced to home confinement after being convicted in juvenile court of multiple counts of aggravated assault, domestic battery abuse, and illegal possession of a firearm. An arrest warrant was issued on May 21 after Nunez failed to abide by the conditions of his release.
Law enforcement familiar with the investigation said the ankle monitor administered by the Office of Juvenile Justices was deactivated around the time of the shooting.
The ankle monitor worn by Nunez was monitored by contractor BI, which did not provide real-time tracking.
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill blasted the company for being “asleep at the wheel” and described the ankle monitoring system as a “waste of time and money.”
Murrill called for an investigation into Louisiana’s juvenile court and its contract with BI.
Copyright 2024, HorizonPost.com
