A woman who offered a stranger a ride in Mid-City ended up watching him drive away in her own car, according to the New Orleans Police Department, which is now asking the public for help identifying and locating the man responsible. The incident happened around 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at a business in the 300 block of South Broad Street.
According to a report from the New Orleans Police Department, the victim had given the pictured suspect a ride before he allegedly drove off in her 2004 silver Toyota Camry without her permission. Investigators say the man may go by the name Eric Smith, though that identity has not been confirmed. NOPD is treating him as wanted for unauthorized use of a movable, and as with any suspect, he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
The location places the case squarely in the Mid-City Security District, a stretch of South Broad Street that serves as a major commercial corridor near the Orleans Parish criminal court complex, according to the Mid-City Security District. The area falls under the jurisdiction of NOPD First District detectives, who handle investigations across Mid-City and Tremé and are based out of headquarters on North Rampart Street.
Why Louisiana Charges Differ From Grand Theft Auto
Louisiana doesn't prosecute cases like this as grand theft auto or carjacking. Because the victim voluntarily let the suspect into her vehicle before he drove off, prosecutors need only show the car was taken or used without consent — not that he intended to permanently keep it. That distinction is spelled out under Louisiana Revised Statute Title 14, § 68, which defines unauthorized use of a movable as the intentional taking or use of another's property without consent, absent any intent to permanently deprive the owner of it, per the Louisiana State Legislature.
Louisiana courts have upheld that consent has limits. In State v. Loyd, the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal affirmed that driving or retaining a vehicle beyond the scope or duration the owner permitted still constitutes unauthorized use, according to FindLaw Caselaw. In other words, offering someone a ride does not hand them an open-ended right to keep driving the car wherever they please.
If convicted, the suspect could face significant penalties. Louisiana law sets the punishment for unauthorized use of a movable valued above $1,000 at a fine of up to $5,000, imprisonment with or without hard labor for up to two years, or both, according to FindLaw.
A Citywide Decline in Vehicle Thefts
The South Broad Street case comes amid a marked drop in vehicle theft citywide. Motor vehicle thefts in New Orleans fell by more than 30% in 2025, part of a broader multi-year decline in property crimes across Orleans Parish, per NOPD News. That mirrors a statewide trend: National Insurance Crime Bureau data cited by KPEL News showed vehicle thefts across Louisiana dropped more than 30% in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period a year earlier, echoing a 17% national decrease.
The numbers look very different from just a few years ago. In 2022, NOPD recorded 7,109 motor vehicle theft reports, a recent historical peak that FBI crime data pegged as roughly a 1-in-80 theft risk for New Orleans residents, KPEL News reported. That surge pushed city leaders to expand automated license plate readers and stand up targeted task forces aimed at curbing the problem.
How to Report a Tip
Anyone with information on the suspect's identity or whereabouts is asked to contact NOPD First District detectives at 504-658-6010, or reach the department's Public Affairs Division by email at [email protected]. Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans at 504-822-1111, through the toll-free line 1-877-903-STOP, or online at crimestoppersgno.org.
Crimestoppers offers cash rewards of up to $2,500 for anonymous tips that lead to an arrest and indictment in felony cases across Orleans Parish. The case adds to a string of recent NOPD bulletins seeking public help identifying vehicle theft suspects, including an Algiers auto theft spree reported last month.
