Cops: All 4 New Orleans attack suspects now in custody; one confessed to pastor
NEW ORLEANS -- All four men accused in the brutal beating of two tourists in New Orleans' French Quarter Saturday are in custody, reports CBS affiliate WWL-TV.
Authorities said the group mugged two Boston-area men who were in town for a religious convention, leaving one of them in critical condition. The attack was seen on graphic surveillance video.
The first suspect, 21-year-old Dejuan Paul, was taken into custody Monday after reportedly confessing to his pastor and turning himself in. Joshua Simmons, 18, was arrested early Tuesday after someone told police where he was.
Records show Rashaad Piper, 20, and Nicholas Pogozelski, 18, were booked into the Orleans Justice Center in the early morning hours Wednesday, the station reports.
The video shows the attack on James Curran and Tim Byrne, Unitarian Universalist Association information-technology staffers, around 9 p.m. Saturday while they were walking back to their hotel.
Curran was punched in the face. He suffered a fractured nose, a family member told WWL-TV. Byrne, who was knocked unconscious and fell face first on the sidewalk after he was punched, suffered "serious brain injury," according to the warrant.
Police have said Byrne was hospitalized in critical condition, but his condition has since improved slightly. Curran was treated and released.
All four suspects face second-degree robbery charges instead of simple robbery because of the severity of the injuries, police have said.
