Nearly six months after a fatal shooting left a 21-year-old man dead in Baker, authorities have made a second arrest. Dedrick Varise, 19, of Port Allen was taken into custody on Monday and booked into East Baton Rouge Parish Prison on a second-degree murder charge.
The shooting happened just before 10 a.m. on May 16 near the intersection of Groom Road and Chemin Drive in Baker, according to WAFB. The East Baton Rouge Parish Coroner's Office identified the victim as Javon Quatrevingt, 21, the station reported.
Police also said Gregory Johnson was arrested in connection with the shooting and is facing a second-degree murder charge, per the same WAFB report. That name mirrors earlier coverage from May, when WAFB reported that Baker Police Chief Carl Dunn said officers had arrested a 17-year-old identified as Gregory Johnson Jr. in the case.
What Led to the Shooting Remains Disputed
Accounts of what sparked the deadly encounter differ depending on the outlet. WAFB's initial report in May said the motive remained under investigation. The Advocate, however, reported that the shooting happened in a home in the 1100 block of Chemin Drive, off Groom Road, during what police described as a drug deal, according to The Advocate.
WAFB reported the latest arrest Tuesday, Nov. 3; it occurred Monday, Nov. 2, and Varise now faces the same second-degree murder charge previously lodged against Johnson.
