BATON ROUGE — What initially appeared to be a pedestrian struck and killed on the old Mississippi River Bridge on the evening of Feb. 13 has now led to the arrest of the victim’s girlfriend and several of her family members. Police arrested a fourth suspect this week, who now faces charges of kidnapping and first-degree murder.
The victim has been identified as Gerard Nicholas Richard, 41.
The fourth suspect, Darius Conley, 33, of Baton Rouge, was arrested on Feb. 26. He has been charged with first-degree murder, second-degree kidnapping, and obstruction of justice.
Three other family members were previously taken into custody:
- The victim’s girlfriend, Coshelia Conley, 36, of Baker, is charged with obstruction of justice and accessory after the fact to second-degree murder.
- Her son, Da’Sean Conley, 17, is charged with second-degree murder and obstruction of justice.
- His grandmother, Cathy Conley, is charged as a principal to second-degree murder and with obstruction of justice.
State Police initially responded to the bridge on Feb. 13, 2025, under the assumption that a pedestrian had been hit. However, they quickly determined that the incident was a murder.
According to the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office, someone attempted to dispose of the body, likely intending to throw it over the bridge. However, the body did not make it into the river and was instead left on the bridge, where it was struck by multiple vehicles.
Arrest documents state that witnesses at the scene initially reported that Da’Sean Conley was alone with Richard when an argument escalated at an apartment complex. However, further investigation revealed that Da’Sean was not alone.
Deputies later determined that Da’Sean allegedly beat and punched Richard during the altercation, while Darius Conley held Richard at gunpoint with an assault rifle. The two men then forced Richard into a Chevy Tahoe, where he was ultimately shot and killed. About 30 minutes later, his body was discovered on the bridge.
“The victim’s wrist was tied up with rope and tape. A bloody blanket and weighted kettlebell were recovered on the scene as if the victim was wrapped inside of the blanket before being run over by multiple vehicles. In addition, blood smears were located on the railing of the bridge, suggesting that someone attempted to throw the victim’s remains from the bridge,” said arresting documents.
A witness also reported seeing a gray Chevy Tahoe parked atop the bridge. Deputies later discovered that a gray Chevy Tahoe had been completely burned in East Feliciana Parish.
“Inside of the vehicle, homicide detectives observed a charred kettlebell weight, which was similar to the one found near the victim’s body. Arson Investigators from the Louisiana State Fire Marshall’s Office were on scene and determined that the fire was intentionally set,” said the arrest warrant.
Deputies then obtained a search warrant for Conley’s home, where they allegedly discovered “a trail of apparent blood leading from the parking lot to her apartment.”
Officials stated that “someone attempted to clean a large area of blood droplets with a chemical solution, likely bleach.”
Inside the home, detectives “observed several areas of suspected blood on the floor, as well as on light switches and other surfaces.”
Further investigation revealed additional traces of blood that had been cleaned up and were not visible to the naked eye.
Cathy Conley, Da’Sean’s grandmother and Coshelia’s mother, is accused of disposing of garbage bags containing evidence of blood found near her bed. She is also accused of lying to detectives, claiming she was asleep when the incident occurred.
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