ST. TAMMANY PARISH, La. — A second man was arrested and stands accused of murder in the shooting death of a 43-year-old outside a Slidell bar in May, sheriff's officials said.
31-year-old Tony Smith was arrested Friday in connection to the death of 43-year-old Melvin Webb, who was found shot in the head outside of Gloria's Bar on Salmen Street in the early hours of May 19.
According to St. Tammany Sheriff's officials, Smith was arrested shortly before 2 p.m. outside a business near Gause Boulevard and Front Street in Slidell by deputies and U.S. Marshals. He was booked in the parish jail, where he joined the second suspect in the murder case, 30-year-old Jules Johnson of Slidell.
While both men face a list of charges, police officials suspect Johnson fired the shot that killed Webb. He fled the state following the incident and was arrested in June after running from police at a motel outside of Atlanta.
As the neighborhood reeled from the shooting, neighbors like Lesprance Batiste told WWL-TV in the days following that violence had no place in their home.
“Shooting him in the face. I mean, it kind of got to me at first. I don't know what the man could've did to have shot him in the face," Batiste said.
The shooting happened about 1:30 a.m. outside of Gloria's Bar, where one of the rules is no weapons. It's a quiet and secluded area near Slidell.
On Monday, District Attorney Warran Montgomery announced both men were charged with second-degree murder. Johnson was also charged with possession of a firearm or carrying a concealed weapon by a convicted felon.
Months after the killing, a motive was still unclear.
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