Kenner police have arrested two brothers accused in the chilling slaying of a convenience store clerk who was executed while on his knees during a Nov. 30 armed robbery.
Police identified the brothers as suspects through DNA evidence left at the Shell station near the intersection of West Esplanade Avenue and Williams Boulevard. They also collected surveillance videos from nearby homes and businesses and got tips through the Crimestoppers hotline, according to Kenner Police Chief Michael Glaser.
Customers pull up to fill their cars with gas at a Shell station on Williams Boulevard in Kenner where the clerk of the store was killed early in the morning on Monday, November 30, 2020.
"This was a senseless homicide," said Glaser, who noted the victim, Abd El Ghader Sylla, 30, had complied with every demand of the robbers. "On the way out, somebody decides to stop and in cold blood, shoot and kill the clerk."
Lamonte Loggins, 28, of Kenner, was arrested Tuesday on warrants for first-degree murder, armed robbery, illegal carrying of a weapon and illegal use of a weapon. He is the suspected gunman who fatally wounded Sylla, investigators said. His brother, Eric Rodgers, 29, was arrested Wednesday on charges of second-degree murder and armed robbery.
The pair was taken into custody in Memphis by the U.S. Marshals Service. Loggins and Rodgers are originally from Tennessee but moved to the Kenner area two years ago with the mother, Glaser said.
'Makes no sense': Kenner store clerk, 30, obeyed robbers, yet they still killed him, police say
The robbery occurred about 2:10 a.m. when two masked men entered the Shell station and walked around like they were interested in buying something, authorities said.
One of men walked over to Sylla, who was working an extra shift that morning, pulled out a pistol and demanded money, police said. As the other robber stood by the door acting as a lookout, Sylla grabbed cash from the register and handed it over to the gunman.
Sylla, whose wife is due with their second child, kneeled on the ground with his hands up and pleaded to be left alone, according to authorities. But the gunman walked behind the counter and shot him in the chest without provocation, police said. Sylla died of his injuries after being taken to the hospital.
The ruthlessness of Sylla's slaying created an urgency for Kenner police detectives who wanted to get the clerk's killers off the streets, according to Glaser.
"We preach compliance in any robbery," Glaser said. "He did what he was supposed to do, and he was still shot and killed."
Investigators realized the gunman left behind a piece of evidence that contained DNA. That sample later matched to Loggins, Glaser said. The Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office crime lab made the identification, according to the chief.
Detectives also canvassed the area and began collecting surveillance videos from about 35 to 40 homes and businesses that allowed them to track the movements of the suspects in the moments after the murder. Officers watched the men get into a vehicle, a gray Hyundai Sonata, and followed its movements to an apartment complex in north Kenner, Glaser said.
The vehicle had a temporary registration tag which delayed identification, but detectives eventually determined the car belonged to a woman later identified as Rodgers' girlfriend, Glaser said.
By the time investigators received details of the DNA hit from the Sheriff's Office, Loggins and Rodgers had already fled the Kenner area for Tennessee.
The authorities learned that the brothers were staying with relatives and friends in Memphis. Loggins and Rodgers' family members have cooperated with the investigation, Glaser said.
"It was considered a serious crime," said Scott Illing, U.S. Marshal for the Eastern District of Louisiana. "I considered the two suspects an immediate threat to our community."
Loggins and Rodgers were being held Thursday at that Shelby County Jail in Memphis. They will be extradited to Jefferson Parish.
Loggins could face the death penalty if convicted of first-degree murder, defined by state law as a death that occurs when the offender has the intent to kill during the commission of a felony, in this case, an armed robbery.
Rodgers is facing a second-degree murder charge, which carries mandatory life in prison. He isn't facing the more serious charge, like his brother, because the criminal commissioner who signed the warrants felt he lacked the "intent" to kill. Second-degree murder is a death that occurs during a felony, even if the offender doesn't intend to kill or harm, state laws says.
"I still think I can argue first-degree on both," Glaser said.
The Jefferson Parish District Attorney's Office will decide whether to seek the death penalty for Loggins and present the cases to a grand jury for formal charges.
Police identified the brothers as suspects through DNA evidence left at the Shell station near the intersection of West Esplanade Avenue and Williams Boulevard. They also collected surveillance videos from nearby homes and businesses and got tips through the Crimestoppers hotline, according to Kenner Police Chief Michael Glaser.
Customers pull up to fill their cars with gas at a Shell station on Williams Boulevard in Kenner where the clerk of the store was killed early in the morning on Monday, November 30, 2020.
"This was a senseless homicide," said Glaser, who noted the victim, Abd El Ghader Sylla, 30, had complied with every demand of the robbers. "On the way out, somebody decides to stop and in cold blood, shoot and kill the clerk."
Lamonte Loggins, 28, of Kenner, was arrested Tuesday on warrants for first-degree murder, armed robbery, illegal carrying of a weapon and illegal use of a weapon. He is the suspected gunman who fatally wounded Sylla, investigators said. His brother, Eric Rodgers, 29, was arrested Wednesday on charges of second-degree murder and armed robbery.
The pair was taken into custody in Memphis by the U.S. Marshals Service. Loggins and Rodgers are originally from Tennessee but moved to the Kenner area two years ago with the mother, Glaser said.
'Makes no sense': Kenner store clerk, 30, obeyed robbers, yet they still killed him, police say
The robbery occurred about 2:10 a.m. when two masked men entered the Shell station and walked around like they were interested in buying something, authorities said.
One of men walked over to Sylla, who was working an extra shift that morning, pulled out a pistol and demanded money, police said. As the other robber stood by the door acting as a lookout, Sylla grabbed cash from the register and handed it over to the gunman.
Sylla, whose wife is due with their second child, kneeled on the ground with his hands up and pleaded to be left alone, according to authorities. But the gunman walked behind the counter and shot him in the chest without provocation, police said. Sylla died of his injuries after being taken to the hospital.
The ruthlessness of Sylla's slaying created an urgency for Kenner police detectives who wanted to get the clerk's killers off the streets, according to Glaser.
"We preach compliance in any robbery," Glaser said. "He did what he was supposed to do, and he was still shot and killed."
Investigators realized the gunman left behind a piece of evidence that contained DNA. That sample later matched to Loggins, Glaser said. The Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office crime lab made the identification, according to the chief.
Detectives also canvassed the area and began collecting surveillance videos from about 35 to 40 homes and businesses that allowed them to track the movements of the suspects in the moments after the murder. Officers watched the men get into a vehicle, a gray Hyundai Sonata, and followed its movements to an apartment complex in north Kenner, Glaser said.
The vehicle had a temporary registration tag which delayed identification, but detectives eventually determined the car belonged to a woman later identified as Rodgers' girlfriend, Glaser said.
By the time investigators received details of the DNA hit from the Sheriff's Office, Loggins and Rodgers had already fled the Kenner area for Tennessee.
The authorities learned that the brothers were staying with relatives and friends in Memphis. Loggins and Rodgers' family members have cooperated with the investigation, Glaser said.
"It was considered a serious crime," said Scott Illing, U.S. Marshal for the Eastern District of Louisiana. "I considered the two suspects an immediate threat to our community."
Loggins and Rodgers were being held Thursday at that Shelby County Jail in Memphis. They will be extradited to Jefferson Parish.
Loggins could face the death penalty if convicted of first-degree murder, defined by state law as a death that occurs when the offender has the intent to kill during the commission of a felony, in this case, an armed robbery.
Rodgers is facing a second-degree murder charge, which carries mandatory life in prison. He isn't facing the more serious charge, like his brother, because the criminal commissioner who signed the warrants felt he lacked the "intent" to kill. Second-degree murder is a death that occurs during a felony, even if the offender doesn't intend to kill or harm, state laws says.
"I still think I can argue first-degree on both," Glaser said.
The Jefferson Parish District Attorney's Office will decide whether to seek the death penalty for Loggins and present the cases to a grand jury for formal charges.
