Arrest made in Beauregard deputy’s death
Marrero man charged with second-degree murder; no bond set
A Marrero man has been arrested in connection with the murder of a Beauregard Parish deputy, according to authorities.
Phil Oliver, 35, was charged on Thursday with second-degree murder of 24 year-old Marquita Wright.
According to DeRidder Police Chief John Gott, Oliver is an ex-boyfriend of Wright.
Oliver was taken into custody at 4:50 p.m. in Jefferson Parish by Louisiana State Police.
Gott said the arrest was made based on the investigation by the combined efforts of the DeRidder Police Department, Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office, Louisiana State Police, Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the United States Marshall’s Task Force.
Oliver was booked into the Jefferson Parish Jail with no bond set. He will be transported to the Beauregard Parish Jail at a later day, Gott said.
A conviction of second-degree murder carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The investigation is ongoing, Gott said, and any information on the murder is still being welcomed by detectives.
BPSO Chief Deputy Joe Toler said that, on behalf of his deputies, he was relieved to hear an arrest had been made. “I am deeply relieved that the person responsible for the tragic death of one of our own has been arrested,” Toler stated.
Wright was found shot outside her home just before 5 a.m. the morning of Aug.
27. Authorities said that she had just returned home after finishing her night shift as a BPSO dispatcher.