Louisiana

A Louisiana man was sentenced to 45 years in prison for kidnapping and attempting to murder a gay man as part of a months-long scheme to kidnap and murder gay men.

According to evidence, the defendant attempted to kidnap one man and successfully kidnapped two other men using Grindr, an online dating application for gay and bisexual men. The defendant attempted to murder one of the men, intending to dismember and keep the victim’s body parts.

Press Release: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/louisiana-man-sentenced-45-years-kidnapping-and-attempting-murder-gay-man-part-hate-crime

Press Release: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/louisiana-man-indicted-attempted-murder-gay-man-and-plot-kidnap-and-murder-other-gay-men

Holden Matthews has pled guilty to intentionally setting fire to three Baptist churches in the area of Opelousas because of the religious character of those buildings. Matthews set the fires over ten days in March and April of 2019, and each of the church buildings was destroyed.

Matthews admitted that he intentionally set fire to the three Baptist churches with predominately African-American congregations.

Matthews further admitted that he wanted to raise his profile as a “Black Metal” musician by copying similar crimes committed in Norway in the 1990s. After setting the third fire, he posted photographs and videos on Facebook showing the first two churches burning. He admitted that he took these photographs and videos in real-time on his cell phone as he watched the churches burn, and that he posted them to Facebook to promote himself in the Black Metal community.

Matthews will be sentenced on May 22, 2020. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a statutory maximum sentence of 70 years in prison.

Indictment: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/louisiana-man-charged-federal-hate-crimes-setting-fire-three-st-landry-parish-churches

Plea: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/louisiana-man-pleads-guilty-burning-three-baptist-churches-st-landry-parish

Terry Knope and Raylaine Knope have been sentenced to 336 months in federal prison for charges of conspiring to obtain forced labor and a Hate Crime involving a woman with cognitive disabilities. Bridget Knope was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison for conspiring with family members to receive forced labor. Jody Lambert was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison in June 2019 for conspiring with family members to violate the federal housing rights of a woman with disabilities.

The family conspired to obtain unpaid household labor from a woman with a disability through force, threats of force, physical restraint, as well as physical, verbal, and psychological abuse. The victim was locked in a backyard cage and forced to perform housework in exchange for food and water. The family also routinely stole the victim’s federal disability benefits.

Terry Knope Sentencing: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edla/pr/louisiana-man-sentenced-violating-civil-rights-woman-disabilities

Raylaine Knope and Bridget Lambert Sentencing: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/louisiana-mother-and-daughter-sentenced-violating-civil-rights-woman-disabilities

Jody Lambert Sentencing: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/louisiana-man-sentenced-conspiring-violate-federal-housing-rights-woman-disabilities

Jody Lambert has been sentenced to 120 months in federal prison for conspiring with family members to violate the federal housing rights of a woman with disabilities.

Lambert, along with Raylaine Knope and Terry Knope II and other members of their family, conspired to obtain uncompensated household labor from a woman with a disability through force, threats of force, and physical restraint, as well as physical, verbal, and psychological abuse. The victim was locked in a backyard cage and forced to perform housework in exchange for food and water. The couple also routinely stole the victim’s monthly federal disability benefits.

Raylaine and Terry Knope pleaded guilty to counts of forced labor, violation of the federal Fair Housing Act, and hate crimes. They will be sentenced on August 22, 2019, and face a maximum sentence of 28 years in prison.

Charges Filed: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/amite-residents-charged-civil-rights-crimes-abusing-family-member-disabilities

Guilty Plea: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/louisiana-couple-pleads-guilty-criminal-civil-rights-charges-abusing-woman-disabilities

Sentencing: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/louisiana-man-sentenced-conspiring-violate-federal-housing-rights-woman-disabilities

A federal judge in Louisiana sentenced a New Orleans man to ten years in prison followed by five years of supervised release. The sentencing follows an October 2018 guilty plea in which the man admitted to shooting three African-American men because of their race as the men tried to get out of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

In 2005, the three African-American men walked through a neighborhood to reach a ferry landing used as an evacuation point. The defendant and his neighbors had constructed a barricade of fallen trees to block their streets, and when the three men crossed the barricade, the defendant shot and wounded them. After the shooting, the defendant warned one of his neighbors that "anything coming up this street darker than a brown paper bag is getting shot."

Sentencing: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edla/pr/new-orleans-man-sentenced-hate-crime-shooting-three-african-american-men-attempting

Guilty Plea: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/new-orleans-man-pleads-guilty-hate-crime-shooting-three-african-american-men-attempting

• June 22, 2023 | U.S. Attorney for Eastern District of Louisiana Joins Law Enforcement, Stakeholders to Combat Antisemitism and Hate Crimes
• January 25, 2023 | Louisiana Man Sentenced to 45 Years for Kidnapping and Attempting to Murder a Gay Man as Part of Hate Crime Scheme Targeting Users of a Dating App for Gay Men
• August 18, 2021 | FBI New Orleans Encourages the Public to Report Hate Crimes
• July 14, 2021 | Aaron Ahlquist Presented with the 2020 FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award
• March 18, 2021 | Louisiana Man Indicted for Attempted Murder of a Gay Man and Plot to Kidnap and Murder Other Gay Men
• November 2, 2020 | Louisiana Man Sentenced for Arson of Three African-American Churches
• February 10, 2020 | Louisiana Man Pleads Guilty to Burning Three Baptist Churches in St. Landry Parish
• October 31, 2019 | Louisiana Man Sentenced for Violating Civil Rights of Woman with Disabilities
• June 13, 2019 | Louisiana Man Sentenced for Conspiring to Violate the Federal Housing Rights of Woman with Disabilities
• June 12, 2019 | Louisiana Man Charged with Federal Hate Crimes for Setting Fire to Three St. Landry Parish Churches
• May 20, 2019 | Louisiana Couple Pleads Guilty to Criminal Civil Rights Charges for Abusing Woman With Disabilities
• April 10, 2019 | Statement by U.S. Attorney David C. Joseph on church burnings in St. Landry Parish | USAO-WDLA | Department of Justice
• February 14, 2019 | New Orleans Man Sentenced For Hate Crime in Shooting of Three African-American Men Attempting To Evacuate After Hurricane Katrina
• October 18, 2018 | New Orleans Man Pleads Guilty to Hate Crime in Shooting of Three African-American Men Attempting to Evacuate After Hurricane Katrina
• July 26, 2018 | Amite Residents Charged with Civil Rights Crimes for Abusing Family Member with Disabilities