On September 1, 2023 just before 3:30 P.M. officers with the Opelousas Department responded to a shooting at Al’s tires located in the 800Blk of S. Union St. Upon arrival officers found one adult male victim who was an employee of the business suffering from a gunshot wound to his leg area. Officers learned that a disturbance had occurred with a customer who had an issue with a used tire that had been purchased earlier in the day. At some point during the disturbance the brother of the female customer arrived at the business and the confrontation escalated between the parties and the employees of the business. The suspect who was later identified as Nathan Morton age 29 of Opelousas retrieved a handgun from his vehicle and fired several shots at the employee of the business striking him in the leg. Morton fled the scene after the shooting. Officers were able to make contact with Morton and he surrendered himself to officers about 30 minutes after the shooting. Officers were able to seize the weapon suspected of being used in the shooting. As of this time the victim was scheduled to be released from the hospital as the injury did not require immediate admission into a medical facility. Nathan Morton will be booked in the St. Landry Parish Jail on the following charges:
- Attempted Second Degree Murder
- Illegal Use of Weapons or Dangerous Instrumentalities
- Illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon
Opelousas Police ask anyone with any information related to this shooting to contact the Opelousas Police Department at 337-948-2500, crimetips@opelousaspd.com or through Crime Stoppers (337-948-TIPS, **TIPS on a mobile phone, www.stlandrycrimestoppers.com or download the P3 mobile App.) Tipsters will remain anonymous. Tipsters will receive a $2,500 cash reward.
