NEW ORLEANS — An 18-year-old New Orleans man described as “one of New Orleans’ most violent offenders” has been booked in four murders in two separate shootings, including the March 21 triple slaying of two men and a woman inside a apartment on Encampment Street in the St. Bernard neighborhood.
Following his arrest last Wednesday, Tyrone Steele also was booked in the fatal shooting of a man whose body was found in a canal off of Morrison Road in eastern New Orleans on March 26, authorities announced at a press conference Monday.
Steele was as previously booked in a separate murder and unrelated attempted murder, but those cases were ultimately dropped in state court by the district attorney’s office, court records show.
In a follow-up statement about those prior cases, the DA’s office wrote, “The defendant, Tyrone Steele, has remained on our radar. As Chief Ferguson said, we did not have enough evidence to secure indictment. Nonetheless, we have never given up on this matter and delivering justice for the crimes that we believe he committed.”
As for the attempted murder, which dates back to when Steele was a juvenile, the office stated, “According to the law, we are not allowed to publicly comment on this case as it has been moved to Juvenile Court.”
At the press briefing, District Attorney Jason Williams applauded the collaboration between his office, the NOPD and other agencies in building a case against a man described as one of the city’s most wanted killers.
“This strong and necessary partnership is the reason we are standing here today, announcing the grand jury indictment and arrest of one of the most violent offenders in New Orleans,” Williams said.
Upon questioning, NOPD Superintendent Shaun Ferguson acknowledged Steele’s prior arrests, adding that the new indictments against him for four counts of first-degree murder will give detectives an opportunity to give a fresh look at the earlier murder in hopes of reviving that case.
“There was a case in which he was arrested and it did not go as we had wished, but as the normal process would be, as we get new evidence, new information that we can present to the district attorney, we will take another look at that,” Ferguson said. “I can assure you that is exactly what we are doing right now.”
In the March 21 triple homicide, police said Amya Cornin, 21, Darrin Williams, 27, and Nehemiah Jones, 24, were fatally shot at about 3 a.m. and declared dead at the scene.
Five days later, the body of Shane Jones, 20, was found floating in a canal at the corner of Morrison and Gannon roads. An autopsy later determined that Jones had been fatally shot.
Ferguson did not elaborate on what evidence led detectives to Steele, but he displayed seven guns that were confiscated when Steele was arrested in the 1800 block of Touro Street, adding that the weapons would undergo ballistics testing to try to link them to these and other shootings.
Ferguson also noted that several “associates” of Steele were taken into custody at the time of his arrest, but would not elaborate on their names or charges other than to say they have not been booked in the killings.
Steele is currently being held without bail at the Orleans Justice Center.