On July 23, Washington Parish Sheriff's Office deputies responded to a report of a man who had been shot near the intersection of Sunny Hill Road and Highway 38 in the Mt. Hermon area. The investigation following the shooting led to the arrest of Tyler Oatis, 18, a resident of Gill Road.
Jessica Mezquite, 20, a resident of Highway 1056, was identified as being with Oatis at the time of the shooting.
Oatis was apprehended in Pike County, Mississippi, and extradited to Washington Parish on July 26 and was jailed on a charge of the attempted murder of Johnell Matthews, of Mount Hermon. Mezquite was arrested on July 27 and was jailed on a charge of being an accessory to the attempted murder of Matthews.
On August 9, Matthews died. As a result of his death, the charge against Oatis has been upgraded to first degree murder and the charge against Mezquite has been upgraded to accessory to first degree murder. Oatis is being held with no bond. Mezquite's bond is set at $250,000.
An investigate source indicated that the shooting may have occurred during a drug deal.
"The short time span between the time of the shooting and the initial arrest of Oatis is indicative of the hard work of our patrol deputies and detectives," said Sheriff Randy Seal. "Washington Parish is blessed to have such fine officers working daily, around the clock, to protect and serve all citizens. The men and women of our Sheriff's Office provide faithful service to all of us and for that we are grateful."
