NEW ORLEANS — Three teenagers have been indicted by a grand jury for the death of French Quarter tour guide and Slidell native, Kristie Thibodeaux, the Orleans Parish District Attorney's Office said Thursday.
Kevin Nunez, 15, Jerben Albarec, 17, and Joshua Bonifacio, 19 were indicted for second-degree murder in connection to the fatal shooting of 43-year-old Thibodeaux.
Albarec and Bonifacio are also facing an armed robbery charge.
All three suspects will be tried as adults and face life sentences if convicted, the DA said in a release.
Thibodeaux was sitting in her Jeep in familiar surroundings in the Quarter when she was fatally shot at about 4:30 a.m. on June 30.
In an affidavit for an arrest warrant obtained by WWL Louisiana, the two adult suspects admitted to detectives that they were engaged in a robbery spree in the French Quarter, both telling officers that the juvenile fired the fatal shot as Thibodeaux sat in her car on St. Peter Street near Royal Street.
Thibodeaux's death also got the attention of local and state leaders, calling for more accountability into the juvenile's ankle monitoring system.
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill ordered the Louisiana Department of Justice to open an investigation into the ankle monitoring contracts with the juvenile court system in New Orleans.
The DA's office said they are preparing the case for trial.
“Our office will pursue this case with the full weight of the law to ensure that justice is served for Kristie Thibodeaux and her loved ones. This senseless and vile act against an innocent person will not go unanswered,” said Chief Derbes.
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