Belle Chasse man arrested after several murder attempts at same location

BELLE CHASSE, La. (WGNO) — A Belle Chasse man has been arrested, after two murder attempts at the same residence.

In November 2022, the Louisiana State Fire Marshal began investigating four separate fires, each outside a home on Highway 23.

Two months later, in January and February of 2023, the Plaquemines Parish Sheriff’s Office began investigating two separate shootings at the same location.

That’s when the state fire marshal’s investigators joined the Sheriff’s office in a joint investigation, in which they identified 39-year-old Willie Garcia as a suspect.

Garcia was arrested on two counts of attempted first degree murder and four counts of aggravated arson.

Detectives also accuse Garcia of threatening a business owner with a gun on Wednesday (Feb. 22). As a convicted felon, Garcia would not be allowed to have a gun.

“These are some serious, violent offenses and we’re fortunate this wasn’t a more tragic incident,” said Plaquemines Parish Sheriff Gerald Turlich.

“This blatant disregard for human life can’t and won’t be tolerated.”