Opelousas murder still unsolved after 4 years

OPELOUSAS, La. ( KLFY ) – A body found in Opelousas in 2020 is still being investigated 4 years later.

In October of 2020, the Opelousas Police Department responded to a call of gunshots on West Landry Street. When officers arrived, they found the body of Taylon Anderson and the beginning of an investigation that remains unsolved. “It’s basically one of those crimes that it’s just very hard to follow up on because there’s really nothing to follow up on other than what some people are saying,” says Sgt. Michael Hidalgo.

According to Opelousas Police, the building was actually used as a gambling hall in the late-night hours. Sergeant Michael Hidalgo says initial reports say Anderson was trying to rob a card game taking place that night. However, with multiple people inside the building at the time of the shooting giving inconsistent stories and a lack of surveillance in the building, Hidalgo says the investigation has been met with several setbacks.

“It was dark out there. The cars usually parked behind the building so you couldn’t see any vehicles back there after they’d finished their gambling. So, people would just kind of move along and just kind of disappear. Several people that were inside that room that night have passed away since this occurred. We just have fewer witnesses that were in that room,” says Sgt. Hidalgo.

With the investigation unable to be closed until a suspect has been found, arrested and convicted, Hidalgo says it’s going to take help from the community if closure is ever to be achieved. “We’re trying to get the public’s interest back into it. So, somebody hopefully will come forward with some more information. This is a homicide, so it’s never going to close. And we want those people to come forward and give us that information, what they know, so we can target the investigation more towards a suspect.”

Anyone with information about this murder is asked to contact the Opelousas Police Department or Saint Landry Parish, Crime Stoppers.

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