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‘Do you have a problem with me?’ Louisiana man kills five including parents & girlfriend captured

Christopher Koulouris: About author bio at bottom of article.
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Dakota Theriot
Pictured Louisiana man, Dakota Theriot and his five victims.
Dakota Theriot
Pictured Louisiana man, Dakota Theriot and his five victims.

Dakota Theriot Louisiana man arrested after shooting spree leaves his girlfriend, her father and brother dead along with the gunman’s parents shortly after.

A 21 year old Louisiana fugitive wanted after allegedly killing his parents after murdering his girlfriend along with her father and brother has been arrested.

Dakota Theriot was charged with five counts of first degree murder, illegal use of weapons, home invasion and theft of a motor vehicle upon being taken into custody some 24 hours plus after his murder spree begun. 

Theriot allegedly killed his girlfriend Summer Ernest, 20, her father Billy Ernest, 43, and her brother Tanner Ernest, 17, at their Ascension residence before murdering his own parents- Elizabeth and Keith Theriot, both 50, some hours later, Saturday morning at their Livingston Parish residence.

Theriot was arrested at gunpoint at his grandmother’s house in Warsaw, Virginia just after 7am on Sunday morning.

The wanted man’s arrest follows Theriot having driven 16 hours and more than 1,000 miles in Billy Ernest’s truck to reach the home. 

Although Theriot did not contact his grandmother, she stayed in a hotel on Saturday night after fearing her grandson might come to her house The Advocate reported.

Theriot’s grandmother had returned with officers on Sunday morning to check on her house when Theriot pulled into the driveway with a ‘firearm pointed out the window’, Richmond County Sheriff Stephan Smith said during a press corps meeting.

‘The deputies sought cover and challenged Theriot, who then dropped the firearm upon their commands and was taken into custody without incident.’  

Dakota Theriot shooting motive: 

Theriot has since made statements to investigators about the murders. 

‘He seemed tired, had a little bit of sleep deprivation, and there were some statements made,’ Smith added. ‘But at this time that’s part of the investigation.’ 

Theriot is scheduled to be extradited back to Louisiana to face charges.  

A motive in the killings has not been revealed, but authorities believe it was a ‘boyfriend [and] girlfriend type of dispute’, according to WAFB. 

Livingston Parish Sheriff Jason Ard said Theriot had been living with Summer Ernest’s family for a few weeks before the shooting. The couple had only just started dating. 

Authorities said Theriot first shot Summer and her father and brother at their trailer home in Livingston Parish. 

A seven-year-old and one-year-old child were also at the scene. The seven-year-old took the baby to the house of neighbor Charlene Bordelon and asked for help. 

Bordelon called 911 after the seven-year-old told her that their father, brother, and sister were dead. 

‘It’s so heartbreaking,’ Bordelon told The Advocate. ‘She was terrified.’  

After killing his girlfriend, her father and brother, Theriot stole Billy Ernest’s truck and drove to his parents’ home 30 miles away in Gonzales, shooting them both in their bedroom before fleeing the scene, authorities said. 

Both Elizabeth and Keith Theriot were still alive when police were called to the home. 

Ascension Parish Sheriff Bobby Webre said police were able to get a ‘dying declaration’ from Keith Theriot ‘to let us know that it was his son that committed this act’. 

The couple were rushed to the hospital, but both passed away from their injuries. 

Keith and Elizabeth Theriot
Pictured, Keith and Elizabeth Theriot.
Summer Ernest
Summer Ernest

Dakota Theriot had been asked to leave from living at his parents home:

Webre said that Theriot had been living with his mom and dad ‘for a little while’ but was ‘recently asked to leave with some disagreements’. 

‘But no idea why he would do anything like this,’ Webre said during a press conference on Saturday. ‘This is probably one of the worst domestic violence [incidents] I’ve seen in quite a while.’

While Theriot was at large, authorities pledged that they would ‘work every lead’ and ‘follow every tip’ to find him. 

Police released a picture of Ernest’s stolen 2004 Doge Ram pickup truck, as well as pictures of Theriot’s tattoos, saying he was ‘armed and dangerous’.  

Victim’s families: ‘They didn’t get good vibes from him’.

The bloodshed has since led to two families are trying to make sense of the violence.

Crystal DeYoung, Billy Ernest’s sister, said her family had only just met Theriot last week at a birthday party. 

‘They didn’t get good vibes from him,’ DeYoung told the Associated Press. ‘My mom is a good judge of character and she just thought he was not good.’ 

DeYoung said her brother, niece, and nephew all had ‘very good hearts’. 

‘They trusted people too much,’ she added. ‘They all loved unconditionally.’  

Michael Logan, who lives next door to the mobile home where the Theriots were killed, said he had overheard several arguments at night in the home recently. 

‘There’s been a lot of yelling matches,’ he said.

‘Any time you hear of a shooting this close to home, it’s never good,’ he added. ‘It never gives you a good feeling.’ 

Both authorities and Billy Ernest’s wife, who had been at work at the time of the shooting, said there were no red flags regarding Theriot before Saturday’s massacre.

Theriot had been arrested in April 2017 for marijuana possession and fleeing authorities during a traffic stop. 

Summer Ernest
Dakota Theriot girlfriend, Summer Ernest

Dakota Theriot social media profile: 

Also pointing at discord were previous posts on Theriot’s Facebook page.

‘If you have a problem with me, tell me. Not everyone else,’ the 21 year old wrote in May. 

‘I don’t care what people say about me I know who I am and I don’t have to prove anything to anyone,’ another post read. 

In June, Theriot posted that he wished he could ‘clear my mind just for one day’, adding a sad face emoji. 

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