[StBernard] Two booked in Chalmette murder

[Westley Annis]

Two booked in Chalmette murder
by Paul Rioux, The Times-Picayune 
Wednesday September 24, 2008, 9:57 AM
Two men have been arrested in connection with the drug-related murder of a
20-year-old man killed in a hail of gunfire late Monday after he answered
the door at his brother's house in Chalmette. 

Timothy Reddick, 42, of Pointe a la Hache, and his nephew, Lavell Cross, 21,
of Algiers, were booked Tuesday night with second-degree murder in the death
of Vantrel Bienemy, who detectives said was not the intended target. 

Reddick and Cross went to the house in the 500 block of Dubarry Street
shortly before midnight Monday seeking revenge against Bienemy's brother
after a fight about drugs, said Chief Deputy Jimmy Pohlmann, of the St.
Bernard Parish Sheriff's Office. 

He said the suspects knocked on the door and Bienemy opened it but quickly
slammed it shut. One or both of the suspects then fired about a dozen shots,
six of which pierced the front door, Pohlmann said. 

Bienemy was hit three times, including twice in the stomach. He died a short
time later at a New Orleans hospital. 

"It's sad that a young man would be killed over something he apparently had
nothing to do with," Pohlmann said. 

Several other people were in the house, including a young child and
Bienemy's brother, whose name was not released. None of them was injured. 

Pohlmann said small bags of marijuana were found in the toilet, suggesting
someone tried to dispose of the drugs before authorities arrived. 

Reddick is being held in the parish jail in Chalmette in lieu of $1 million
bond. He is a convicted sex offender, sheriff's officials said, but details
of that conviction were not immediately available Wednesday. 

Cross, who authorities said has no previous arrests, is also being held at
the parish jail. Bond has not been set. 

Detectives said two .9-mm handguns were found at Cross' home. The guns are
consistent with shell casings at the shooting scene, they said. 

Detectives said such a gangland-style murder is a rarity in St. Bernard
Parish, which has had three homicides this year. 

"We're not accustomed to this, and we're not going to tolerate it," Pohlmann
said.