He was accused of stealing $6,300 in cash, cocaine, and two guns from the evidence room he supervised three years ago.
June 14, 2019
A former Lake Pontchartrain Causeway police officer has been sentenced to four years in prison for stealing guns, cash and drugs from the evidence room he supervised, the North Shore DA's office said Friday (June 14).
William "Billy" Jones Jr., 46, was sentenced Thursday by state Judge Reginald T. Badeaux III to four years at hard labor for malfeasance in office and four years on each of two counts of theft of a firearm, according to a news release. The sentences are to be served at the same time.
Two years of the sentence must be served without the benefit of probation, parole, or suspension of sentence. Jones also must pay a $1,000 fine, the DA's office said.
A jury found Jones guilty of the charges on May 23. He was accused of stealing $6,300 in cash, cocaine, and two guns from the evidence room he supervised three years ago. Jones was fired from the Causeway Police Department.
Assistant District Attorney Jessica Brewster, who testified at the trial, discovered the cash was missing in November 2016. Louisiana law requires law enforcement agencies to notify the District Attorney's Office within 10 days of a seizure. But Brewster had not been notified and Jones avoided her repeated attempts to contact him, she testified.
Brewster contacted the Causeway Police Department, and the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office was brought in to investigate.
Investigators also uncovered that cocaine was missing. Jones confessed to the crime, but testified during the trial that his confession was a lie.
Jones was convicted of stealing seized guns and selling them while wearing his uniform to a Washington Parish convenience store owner.
