This week, a 23-year-old man was taken into custody in Louisiana on suspicion of killing his grandparents. He is said to have shot them inside their house before going to the neighbor’s house and confessing. According to documents, Colby Stokes was arrested on Wednesday night on two counts of first-degree murder related to the deaths of Beverly and Carley Stokes.
Colby Stokes is accused of murder, second-degree aggravated battery, animal cruelty, and being a criminal in possession of a handgun. Authorities raised his accusations on Thursday from the two counts of second-degree manslaughter they had originally filed against him.
The grandparents’ home in Mount Hermon, Louisiana, was the scene of the sad attack on Wednesday, July 3, in the afternoon, according to a report from the Louisiana Radio Network. The region is situated roughly 75 miles northeast of Louisiana’s Baton Rouge.
Following a 911 call from someone informing the emergency dispatcher that their next-door neighbor, whom they named as Stokes, had just arrived at the house and claimed to have slain his grandparents, deputies from the Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to the residence.
Deputies reported that upon reaching the location, they found the elderly couple inside the house, both of whom seemed to have been shot. Beverly Stokes was taken to a hospital for treatment after Carley Stokes was declared deceased at the scene. Not long after arriving at the facility, she passed away from her wounds and was declared deceased.
Colby Stokes was placed under arrest by the responding officers after he waited with the neighbor who had phoned 911, according to WDSU.
Colby Stokes also acknowledged shooting his grandparents to death in a taped interview with detectives, according to Washington County Sheriff Jason Smith, who was sworn in this week. Colby Stokes is a CBS affiliate in New Orleans.
Colby Stokes had a history of run-ins with the law, according to the sheriff, including an arrest for burglary in 2018 when he was 17 years old and charged with taking multiple guns.
“He’s been in and out of jail, he’s had some convictions and had some problems with the law,” Smith stated. “He’s struggled with some mental health issues and some drug abuse.”
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Smith claimed that the circumstances placed the family in an unworkable predicament.
“For this family, they’re on both sides of this issue. Not only have they been victimized by it, they’ve also perpetrated it, so it’s a very difficult circumstance to be in.”
A potential motivation for the killings has not been disclosed by the authorities.
“It is a tragedy that no one should have to face,” as per the statement.
