Natchitoches Parish Sheriff’s Detectives are investigating a home invasion homicide near Campti according to Natchitoches Parish Sheriff Stuart Wright.
On Tuesday March 14, at 11:06 p.m., Deputies assigned to the NPSO Patrol Operations Bureau responded to reports of an unresponsive male lying on the floor of his residence in the 100 block of Jim Bell Road, north of Campti.
Deputies arrived on scene some six minutes later and found 71-year-old Mark L. Hailey deceased on the floor inside his home. Detectives assigned to the NPSO Criminal Investigations Bureau and the Natchitoches Parish Coroner’s Office were summoned. Natchitoches Parish Asst. Coroner Steven Clanton pronounced Hailey dead at the scene from apparent blunt and sharp force trauma.
Deputies questioned Hailey’s nephew who discovered the body. The nephew said he went to the residence to check on his uncle and found front door open. Additionally, the nephew said his uncle’s 2015 maroon Ford F-350 pick-up truck was missing. A BOLO for the vehicle was issued.
The body has been transported to a Shreveport Forensic Pathologist Office for an autopsy to determine the matter and cause of death. Detectives brought in special lighting equipment to assist them while they photographed, and processed the crime scene throughout the night.
On Thursday March 15, shortly after 7:30 a.m., deputies responded a call of a suspicious vehicle being abandoned on Tauzin Island Road in the Grand Ecore area near Natchitoches. The abandoned vehicle was Hailey’s truck.
NPSO Detectives along with three Red River Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Technicians processed the vehicle for evidence. The vehicle has been towed and secured at an undisclosed storage facility for further processing.
A team of detectives worked throughout the day interviewing family and friends of. Hailey in an effort to gather additional facts or other information to assist in the investigation. Hailey was the owner of Fat Daddy’s Crawfish in Shreveport and at one time owned Fat Daddy’s Crawfish on Texas Street in Natchitoches.
The investigation remains active and ongoing. Sheriff Wright stated “our detectives in conjunction with assistance from the Red River Parish Sheriff’s Office and Northwest La. Crime Lab are working tirelessly in an effort to identify the person or persons responsible for this senseless crime of violence.” No additional information is being released to protect the integrity of the investigation.
Case Agents are Detective Sgt. Jared Kilpatrick and Detective Sgt. Craig LaCour from the NPSO Criminal Investigations Bureau.
Those with information are asked to contact the NPSO Criminal Investigations Division at 318/357-7830 or you can also report a tip anonymously by downloading the P3 Tips app on your smart phone or by calling Natchitoches Crime Stoppers at (318) 238-2388.
tips remain confidential and the caller could receive a cash reward up to $2,500 for the arrest of an offender. Crime Stoppers is not a law enforcement agency.
