LA - ***ARREST*** Mickey Shunick, 21, Lafayette 19 May 2012 - #33

[A.C.I]

I hate that the date of the burned truck is in question. The sound bite says the 21st. The press release from LPD says the 31st. WHICH ONE IS IT?!

Eithet date still equals very shoddy work from either San Jacinto or LPD. Unknown who dropped the ball there if they werent on to this guy until 6/14

 

[Foxfire]

I know this sounds crazy...but I am in the baton rouge area now (vacation) and I have this urge/desire to go to the whiskey bay exit and just get a sense of it, take it in, almost "pay respect" to those that have or may have suffered there.

Not crazy at all carterkatt...Say a prayer for me...

 

[RWRNHZ40]

Apparently there's a discrepancy in the date the burned out truck was found. Either a verbal mistake was made or the press release had a typo. Would be nice to get it clarified.

If it was the 21st, there's a very tight timeline between MS's disappearance and the discovery of the truck (not to mention, I can't see how anyone but BSL would report the truck stolen; was it a split second decision to report the truck stolen and then go out to buy another to match it up to his RSO stats? And wasn't he last verified on 5/28? What exactly does that entail?

 

[MLE]

A.C.I., linkage blindness; the reason predators are active for years or decades. Communication/awareness among LE agencies is critical in missing persons investigations.
Brandon Lavergne knew about jurisdictional linkage blindness and attempted to take advantage; Lafayette, Whiskey Bay, TX...Why doesn't Law Enforcement?
If not for an aware citizen's tip, the connection may have never been made...

Police departments in the USA have become ticket writing revenue agencies. The only way the crime was going to be solved was for a concerned citizen to connect the dots for law enforcement.

 

[A.C.I]

A.C.I., linkage blindness; the reason predators are active for years or decades. Communication/awareness among LE agencies is critical in missing persons investigations.
Brandon Lavergne knew about jurisdictional linkage blindness and attempted to take advantage; Lafayette, Whiskey Bay, TX...Why doesn't Law Enforcement?
If not for an aware citizen's tip, the connection may have never been made...

Precisely. And that's what's so frustrating. And yet the public is still often considered a hinderance

 

[Kateinfl]

i think he burnt the truck in Texas and reported it missing in Texas because he knew in LA the police would check into it right away. He might have thought they wouldn't connect the truck in Texas.

 

[neesaki]

I'm feeling so glad that there's an arrest. I was seriously starting to get concerned that this was going to go cold and we'd never know.

I was totally shocked when I heard the news about the arrest. I've gotten so accustomed to no arrests and cold cases, in fact, all the cases I've been following are going cold. Very sad and very :maddening:, just makes me want to :scream:....

 

[A.C.I]

i think he burnt the truck in Texas and reported it missing in Texas because he knew in LA the police would check into it right away. He might have thought they wouldn't connect the truck in Texas.

If so, he was right. As per their statement it was a concerned citizen that tipped them on the guy which allowed them to connect the dots.

 

[courtneyb]

I don't see in the timeline nor did I hear LE give the date the new truck was purchased. Did I just miss it, or did they not say?

 

[Bravo]

I know this sounds crazy...but I am in the baton rouge area now (vacation) and I have this urge/desire to go to the whiskey bay exit and just get a sense of it, take it in, almost "pay respect" to those that have or may have suffered there.

If you do please say a prayer on my behalf :rose:

 

[mamacat]

For anyone who missed the 1 p.m. livestream press conference, here is a link to the video http://www.katc.com/videos/mickey-shunick-press-conference/

 

[Isabelle]

Is there anyway to find out if BSL frequented Artmosphere? Could he have been there watching Mickey more than once?

 

[:+:MrTT:+:]

I know this sounds crazy...but I am in the baton rouge area now (vacation) and I have this urge/desire to go to the whiskey bay exit and just get a sense of it, take it in, almost "pay respect" to those that have or may have suffered there.

On your way stop off at the 135 exit and look around.
​

 

[Boudin]

He may have hit her while on the bike, picked her up and did not attempt to get medical care for whatever reason. This would have contributed to her alleged death.

This is possible. It may have been an unintentional accident and because of his past history he became afraid. It sounds like he recently had a lot going for him-a good job, a girlfriend, and a nice truck. At that time of night he may have just left a club and been drinking, was fearful of getting a DUI, and maybe she died right away or he thought she was dead. It is possible as well that he planned on helping her and then decided against it. Impaired people do things that are not always in their best judgement. It may have nothing to do with his history as a RSO. Or it could have everything to do with it. Unless there's a body and or he tells us, we may never know.

 

[concentric]

As much as I want for LE to find Mickey alive, I also concede that it is probably not the case. So many of these repeat offenders kill a victim to take their chances on not being caught, rather than knowing for a fact they will return to prison.

 

[CajunSarah]

It was emailed at 2:20 p.m.


Arrest Made in Mickey Shunick Case

The Lafayette Police Department would like to extend its appreciation to the Shunick Family, all of the law enforcement agencies involved in this investigation, countless volunteers, private business entities, and the public that have assisted in the search and continue to be there as this investigation remains ongoing. I must caution all of you that although an arrest has been made in this case, much work remains to be done.
Working with our Federal, State and local partners, the Lafayette Police Department has arrested Brandon Scott Lavergne and charged him with 1st Degree Murder and Aggravated Kidnapping. Lavergne is believed to be responsible for the disappearance of Michaela “Mickey” Shunick.
On May 19th of this year, the Shunick family reported Mickey’s disappearance. She had not returned home, missed her brother’s graduation from high school, had notified no one of her location, and did not respond to calls made to her cell phone.
On May 25, video evidence was discovered from an LCG facility that captured Mickey on her bike. Several vehicles were observed in the same video and broadcast to the public as vehicles of interest. All of the vehicles of interest were ruled out except for a white Chevrolet Z71 pickup. The driver as well as the vehicle was not ever identified nor did anyone come forward.
On May 26, Mickey’s bike was located under the Whiskey Bay Bridge on I-10 with damage to the rear tire consistent with being struck by a vehicle.
On June 14, Investigators received information from a concerned citizen, regarding a white Z71 that may be involved in Mickey’s disappearance. The vehicle in question was registered to Brandon Lavergne. Further investigation revealed that the truck was reported stolen in Montgomery County, Texas and later located in San Jacinto County, Texas on May 31st. The truck had been burned just days after police released photographs of the truck as a vehicle of interest.
Based on information and surveillance detectives were able to positively identify the truck that traveled directly behind Mickey in the video as belonging to Brandon Lavergne. Investigators are also able to place Brandon Lavergne in and around the location of where the bicycle was located.
On Thursday, July 5, Louisiana State Police conducted a traffic stop on Lavergne near the intersection of I-10 and I-49. He was arrested on an unrelated warrant and transported to the Lafayette Police Department.
During questioning at Lafayette PD, Lavergne requested an attorney and has refused to cooperate any further with the investigation. At that time, he was additionally charged with the aggravated kidnapping and murder of Mickey Shunick.
This has been a very difficult ordeal for the Shunick Family and we thank them for their continuous cooperation, encouragement, and support in our attempts to determine what happened to Mickey. We want the family to know that we will not rest until we can fully know what happened to her. We continue our efforts to locate and bring Mickey home.
This type of case can overwhelm one agency. A tremendous amount of time, equipment, and resources have been put into this investigation. I would be remiss in my duties if I did not acknowledge and thank all of the agencies and private businesses that have been with us from day one of this case: LPSO, ULPD, Lafayette City Marshal’s Office, LSP, SMSO, SLSO, Iberia SO, Iberville SO, East Baton Rouge SO, Acadia SO, Patterson PD, FBI, US Marshal’s Service, LSP Crime Lab, Acadian Crime Lab, C & C Technologies, and Holbrook Media. It is these types of partnerships that have made an arrest possible in this matter.
I will take questions at this time but I want to caution you that because the investigation is on-going, there is a lot of information that we will not be able to divulge or discuss.

 

[carterkatt]

If you do please say a prayer on my behalf :rose:

I'm not sure I am brave enough to go.....where's chicken...???!

 

[~n/t~]

Trying to catch up and I'm only on page 3 of this thread. I read about the perp burning his truck (the one scene in the surveillance videos). I hate even having to type this but could Mickey's body have been in the truck when he burned it? Could he have hid her in a container of some sort?

When did he burn the truck?

ETA: I just read the press release above. OMG he burned it just days after.

 

[realitybias]

On your way stop off at the 135 exit and look around.
​

Whatever you do, go there during the day. You'll only get creeped out at night.

A lot of people fish there during the day though.

Go ahead. Its about a 30 minute drive west on I-10, if you want to get a good feel for the area.

 

[nursebeeme]

If so, he was right. As per their statement it was a concerned citizen that tipped them on the guy which allowed them to connect the dots.

a lot of these cases are solved via citizen tips.

My hats are off to the citizens who tipped and LE that connected the dots to make this arrest

Now his face is out there and his wanderings to texas I hope it spurs even more citizen tips

can you imagine the tips they are getting just on HIM now that his name is out there?


I personally bet he got a new phone as well as a new truck... he seems to know a bit about how to really obfuscate potential evidence.