Hostage taken in North Rampart Street armed robbery, NOPD says

Picture courtesy of NOPD
An armed robbery suspect briefly took a female victim hostage and threatened to shoot a second person during an incident that occurred earlier this month on North Rampart Street, according to New Orleans Police on Saturday.

Police officials said the robbery was reported at about 3 a.m. on Nov. 7 in the 200 block of North Rampart Street, where the two victims were returning to their vehicle.

An unknown Black male suspect approached the victims and produced a gun from his waistband, taking one of the victims hostage and threated to shoot her if the other female victim attempted to run away, according to the NOPD.

Police said the suspect took money from the victims before fleeing the scene in a black Jeep Grand Cherokee.

NOPD officials ask that anyone with information on the incident or the identity of the suspect to notify Eighth District Detective Donald Willyard at 504-658-6080.

NOPD has released a video of the incident:

Ski mask-wearing suspect with gun arrested on Bourbon Street, NOPD says

A man wearing a ski mask was arrested on suspicion of illegally carrying a gun as he approached officers stationed on Bourbon Street earlier this month, according to New Orleans Police.

New Orleans Police said Eighth District officers were stationed in the 400 block of Bourbon when they saw August Collins, 25, wearing a ski mask with a gun in his waistband as he walked toward them shortly after 12 a.m. on Nov. 1.

Collins was subsequently arrested and booked into Orleans Parish Justice Center.

No further information was provided.

The Quarter Rat #5 – the November issue

The Quarter Rat’s November 2022 issue is out on the “stands.” Get yaselves a copy before it’s too late.

You can find copies at Molly’s on Toulouse and other places scattered throughout the French Quarter. Good luck!

UPDATED 4 robberies reported in the French Quarter area

Four robberies were reported to New Orleans Police between Sunday and Monday in the French Quarter area, including one involving a gun on Barracks Street and one in which the victim was stabbed with a knife in the Central Business District, according to records.

Three robberies were reported Sunday and one on Monday. The first incident occurred at about 7:25 a.m. Sunday in the 900 block of Iberville Street and was reported as a simple robbery after an unknown suspect approached the 33- and 22-year-old victims, according to the NOPD.

Officials said suspect took the victims’ jewelry and wallets, then fled the scene.

The second robbery occurred shortly after 5 p.m. in the 1000 block of Barracks Street, where a 55-year-old male suspect was approached by a Black male suspect armed with a gun after parking his 2004 Jeep Liberty and getting out of the vehicle, according to records.

The victim handed the suspect his car keys, wallet and cell phone after threatened and then the suspect fled the scene in the victim’s Jeep Liberty.

A third robbery was reported Sunday at about 4:49 a.m. in the 100 block of Saint Charles Avenue, where a 54-year-old male victim was approached from behind by an unknown suspect who was armed with a knife and demanded property, according to the NOPD.

Eighth District detectives said the suspect stabbed the victim and took his cash before fleeing the scene. The victim was transported via ground ambulance to a local hospital. Information on his condition was not provided.

On Monday, a phone and wallet were snatched from a male victim during a simple robbery reported on Bourbon Street, according to the NOPD.

The incident was reported at 3:12 p.m. in the 300 block of Bourbon Street, where the suspect, identified as an unknown Black male, approached the 35-year-old victim as he walked and forcefully took his phone and wallet, according to NOPD.

Officials said that after snatching the wallet and phone, the suspect fled from the scene.

Anyone with information on these incidents is asked to contact the Eighth District at 504-658-6080.

Dear Mr. Dean

Dear Mr. Dean:

I was informed by a co-worker that you had stopped by the bar. You brought up to her your past involvement with the old Quarter Rat magazine while boasting about being a writer. She had also written for us and was excited to tell you about the recent incarnation of it. Your alleged response was: “If Styles is involved, it must suck.”

Let me put your concerns to rest. It has never been better. The publisher is an actual reporter, with actual newspaper experience. A reporter, not a “journalist.” Unbiased reporting of facts with verification and credible sources, written free from opinion or spin. NOPD and City Hall press people are taking our calls from The Quarter Rat newspaper to answer questions. How cool is that?

Tabloid sized 11 inches by 14 inches, 16 pages (4 in color) and in newsprint. I have been dreaming of this for 10 years. These are getting scooped up faster than the old ones did. Never any left over. The publisher and I bust our asses to try and keep this as a topical monthly publication. It is seriously not easy. A real effort since we both have a day jobs. Did I mention he’s still a working reporter and also a full-time graduate student?

Jay Slusher is our featured writer. When the publisher approached me to start this back up and asked who we can get to write for us, Jay was on top of my list. It wouldn’t have been The Quarter Rat without him. I just add print layout, ad design and an occasional editorial opinion. OP/ED pieces are clearly that. We are uniquely different from the other numerous monthly publications in town.

I hadn’t thought of you in years, but I’m flattered that you remembered me. It made my morning with hearty laughter. At first I thought I would post a snarky retort here. It’s challenging. I could go for the easy personal attack on you, but I can’t think of anything unique or specific about you that I could poke fun of. You are just generic, void of originality, creativity or independent thought. A non-playable character.

I’ve made all of the hipster observations that I need to in my past writings. The pretension, consumerism, narcissism, the self righteousness copy and paste ideology. Endless snobbery about music, food, nasty beer and celebrity worship. Are you one of those? And you’re a writer? Every hipster claims to be a writer, artist or musician. If you didn’t make any of those title claims, that would be unique.

Please don’t ever try to lay claim to the title of journalist, I’ll clarify why I say that. On March 15, 2018 you posted on social media a breaking story with your spin on it. The headline read: MIAMI BRIDGE COLLAPSE KILLS SEVERAL. Your comment: “We have money to build walls but not for our infrastructure. SMH.” That was your third “Orange Mad Bad” post that night. I had to click on it. You know, get more information, an understanding and some knowledge of the story before I made a comment.

The very first sentence in the breaking news story was something like: a pedestrian bridge under construction collapsed in Miami killing several…” You couldn’t even be be bothered to actually click on and read the article before you offered up your hyperbolic opinion on it. Obviously, you just spent your time scrolling the news and thinking, “How can I bash the right?” Click and share, get those likes from your tribe.

Another loud fart in the echo chamber.

There were a few instances like that, but that is the only one I still remember. You probably wouldn’t like the new QR newspaper. We actually go out and interview people, verify information, quote officials, go directly to those involved and ask for comment. Write it up clearly without a narrative. Very different approach to covering the news than you are probably familiar with. Kind of old school news reporting.

And yes, we still have lots of boob photos.
Best of luck with your future,

Styles
Clean Up Guy,
Art Director
The Quarter Rat Newspaper

The Quarter Report!