Naman Shrestha
A&E’s ‘The First 48: Run and Gun/Lonesome Highway’ delves into two separate homicides that took place in Louisiana and Texas. One of them was that of a recent high-school graduate named Jared Hester, who tragically passed away in New Orleans in October 2013. As the detectives investigated the involvement of two potential suspects in the homicide, they worked hard to gather enough evidence to build a case and bring them to justice. The documentary features interviews with the teenager’s loved ones and the officials involved in the investigation.
Jared Hester Was Found Dead in the Parking Lot of a New Orleans Apartment Complex
Born around 1995 to Dale Ann Hester and Leroyal Hester Sr., Jared Rashawn Hester was raised in a close-knit family alongside his brothers, Leroyal Jr., Doral, Damien, Keon, Jarius, Jeremy, and Joshua, as well as sisters, Schwanda, Shelita, Keisha, Iriana, Crystal, Dinah, Portia, and Diamond. Affectionately known as Gappy, he was loved by many, who cherished his warm, compassionate, and hardworking nature. In the spring of 2013, Jared, who lived in Gertna, Louisiana, graduated from high school and decided to take a year off to work before starting college the following year. Looking forward to starting a new job at an oil rig in October 2013, Jared had high hopes for his future.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans. On the fateful night of October 4, 2013, around 11 pm, police were called to the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana, when gunshots were fired in the parking lot of an apartment complex in the 1500 block of Southlawn Boulevard. When the authorities arrived at the scene, they found 18-year-old Jared dead in the parking lot. He was shot about 14 times across his body, including once in the back, once in the neck, once in the leg, once in each arm, once in the hip, and once in the side. The investigators also found multiple spent .40 shell casings. The cause of his death was determined to be multiple gunshot wounds.
Jared Hester’s Murder Was Solved With the Help of Forensic and Ballistic Examination
Not long after arriving at the crime scene, the detectives learned that officers with the Fourth District Task Force had apprehended two potential suspects, Aaron Thibodeaux and Brent Riggins, running away from the area. The authorities also discovered two firearms that the two men tried to discard. Aaron and Brent were brought in for questioning and tested for gunshot residue, as they denied firing any sort of guns that night. Although the results for Aaron were inconclusive, those for Brent reportedly came back positive. During his interrogation, Brent initially claimed that he didn’t know Aaron and was alone when the police handcuffed him. Later, he admitted to knowing Aaron and being with him on the fateful night. However, both of them denied having anything to do with the murder.
Thus, due to insufficient evidence, Aaron and Brent were released from custody. According to police records, both had previous run-ins with the law. Authorities stated Aaron had previously been arrested for illegal carrying of weapons, criminal trespass, flight from an officer, and bail jumping, while Brent reportedly had an arrest for carnal knowledge of a juvenile and municipal attachments. A couple of weeks after the homicide, the police were able to obtain a search warrant for the suspects’ phone. While looking through the contents of Aaron’s cell phone, they came across pictures of the guns resembling the ones found near the scene on the fateful night.
After confirming that the guns belonged to the duo, the authorities conducted ballistics examinations for the two firearms against the shell casings found near the remains. The investigative reports concluded that while one of the guns jammed, the spent bullet from the other gun matched the spent bullets found at the murder scene, which the authorities used to directly link Aaron and Brent to the murder. The police arrested Aaron for unrelated charges on October 19, 2013. A couple of days later, on October 21, the members of NOPD’s Violent Offenders Warrants Squad (VOWS) arrested Brent Riggins at his house on Horace Street. Later, both of them were charged with second-degree murder in connection with Jared Hester’s killing.
While Aaron is Possibly Out of Jail, Brent is Currently Incarcerated at a Louisiana Prison
In January 2019, Aaron Thibodeaux pleaded guilty to the charge of accessory after the fact to second-degree murder in exchange for a reduced prison term. The following month, on February 19, Brent Riggins pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter before his scheduled trial began. The following day, on February 20, 2019, Aaron was sentenced to the maximum penalty for the charge against him — five years in prison. On the other hand, the judge addressed Brent, stating, “The only thing I can commend you for – and I have to dig deep to be able to find something – is you had the decency to step up and ultimately acknowledge something you did.”
Brent was sentenced to 40 years, after which the judge told him, “This is a long sentence, and you’re a young person. You may very well see daylight after this. I do hope you find redemption.” At the sentencing hearing, Jared’s sister addressed the killer, stating, “We still have no idea what took place. We were told you would like to give an apology. Instead of an apology, the family would like to know what happened for closure.” Brent’s defense attorney offered an apology to the Hester family on his behalf, stating, “For him to give you the rest of the story, he will be putting his family in serious jeopardy. My client did it, he took responsibility for what he did, and he will spend a long time in jail.” As of today, Aaron Thibodeaux is seemingly leading a free life away from the spotlight while 31-year-old Brent is serving his sentence at Allen Correctional Center in Kinder, Louisiana.
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