IBERIA PARISH — UPDATE: State Fire Marshal's Office confirmed that the suspect in the Jeanerette City Hall fire has been arrested.
As we reported in our original story, the State Fire Marshal’s Office and the Jeanerette Police Department announced Wednesday that they were searching for a man wanted for setting fire to Jeanerette City Hall.
Since then, they've arrested Desmond Eugene, 41, in connection with the incident that happened around 1 p.m. on August 28. He was booked with Aggravated Arson and Manufacture and possession of delayed action incendiary devices.
According to investigators, Eugene arrived at City Hall on a bicycle and tried to break into the mayor’s office portion of the building. He used what officials described as "a delayed incendiary device" to set the fire, then left the scene on a bicycle.
A statement from the State Fire Marshal’s Office said several people were inside City Hall at the time of the fire.
"Fortunately, no one was injured, and there was minimal damage reported," the statement said.
Investigators are asking anyone with information on Eugene's whereabouts to contact the Jeanerette Police Department at 337-276-6323 or the State Fire Marshal's Arson Tipline at 1-844-954-1221.
Tips can also be submitted online at lasfm.org [lasfm.org], where information can be shared anonymously.
