Eight people arrested in connection to Feb. 9 shooting death of Bunkie man in Cheneyville

Melissa Gregory, Alexandria Town Talk
·2 min read
Eight people have been arrested in connection to the Feb. 9 shooting death of Matthew Leary Jr., 20.
Eight people have been arrested in connection to the Feb. 9 shooting death of Matthew Leary Jr., 20.

Eight people have been arrested in connection to the Feb. 9 shooting death of a 20-year-old Bunkie man, according to the Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office.

Matthew "Lil Matt" Leary Jr. died at the scene of the shooting, the Church Heights Apartments on Bayou Road in Cheneyville, early that morning. The sheriff's office reported at the time there appeared to have been an altercation between Leary and the occupants of a vehicle before the shooting.

On Friday, the sheriff's office issued a news release that said three Alexandria men have been arrested on charges of second-degree murder.

Aaron Demond Jones, 25, was arrested on Feb. 28. Quantavius Jamar Richard, 27, was arrested on March 1. The last man, 23-year-old Diamante Swaizer, was arrested by U.S. marshals in Porter, Texas, and is awaiting extradition, reads the release.

Porter is about 34 miles north of Houston.

Jones, who is being held in the Rapides Parish Detention Center #1 with bail set at more than $1 million, also was booked on one count of obstruction of justice.

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Swaizer also will be booked on a charge of obstruction of justice when he's returned from Texas.

Richards also was charged with one count of possession of a firearm by a felon, one count of illegal use of a weapon and one count of obstruction of justice. He's being held on a $751,000 bail.

In addition to those arrests, five others were arrested on obstruction of justice and other charges. Two are from Marksville and the others are from Alexandria, Marrero and Porter, Texas. All but one have bonded out of jail.

The investigation is continuing, and more arrests are possible. The sheriff's office asks anyone with information about the case to call Detective Billy Fuller at 318-641-6008 or Crime Stoppers of Cenla at 318-443-7867.

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Alexandria, Marksville, Texas residents arrested after fatal shooting