A Texas man was arrested Friday for the armed robbery 11 months ago at Tiger Nation on West Prien Lake Road.
In April, an armed white male wearing a disguise entered Tiger Nation — a Prien Lake Plaza store that sells LSU merchandise
— and robbed the store clerk and business.
The suspect fled the scene in the victim’s vehicle. Police later recovered the vehicle and items belonging to the suspect.
Evidence was then sent to The Southwest Crime Lab for DNA analysis.
On Thursday, Sgt. Richard Harrell was
notified that a suspect had been identified through DNA as William A.
Shupp, a 41-year-old
white male who lives in Spring, Texas. An arrest warrant was
issued for Shupp and The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office was
contacted for assistance in locating him.
On Friday, The Gulf Coast Violent Offenders and Fugitive Task Force told the Lake Charles Police Department that Shupp had
been captured.
Shupp is charged with armed robbery, false imprisonment, theft and theft of a motor vehicle.
Bond is set at $450,000.
The robbery prompted the lockdown of
Prien Lake Elementary, S.J. Welsh Middle and Barbe High schools. Three
days after the
robbery, police asked for help in identifying a “person of
interest” in a surveillance video. Police said the man in the video
wore a “Grateful Dead” T-shirt with the year “1977” printed on
both sides of the image.
Lake Charles Police Deputy Chief Mark Kraus said by phone Sunday that investigators believe the man in the photo is Shupp.