Last night's Halloween festivities in St. Tammany Parish took a turn towards the dramatic when a photo of what appeared to be an inmate from Club St. Tammany's detention center surfaced, setting off alarms at the local Sheriff's Office. The photo, showing a costumed patron alongside Deputy Justin D'Herete, was shared by Lieutenant Chris Nielsen from the 4th District, leading to a significant scare. St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office detailed the mix-up in a social media post earlier today, clarifying the benign nature of the incident.
In the social media post, a frantic reaction was described as the immediate response to the concerning photo, "CHRIS. WHEN IN THE HECK DID WE HAVE AN ESCAPEE FROM CLUB ST. TAMMANY AND WHY AM I JUST NOW HEARING ABOUT IT?!?” The situation quickly turned out to be a harmless Halloween prank. Lieutenant Nielsen was quoted explaining to quickly calm the situation down, saying “Whoa, whoa, whoa, calm down. We were at Megumi Sushi. One of the patrons was dressed as an inmate for Halloween. He thought it’d be funny to stage a photo.”
The Sheriff's Office took to Facebook to share the tale of the Halloween prank that certainly brought some unwanted excitement. "Thanks for the scare, Chris," the post concluded wryly, signaling an end to all confusion surrounding the event.
