A beloved New Orleans chef, Carl Morgan, was allegedly killed by a carjacker who later fled the scene in his car. Raymond Wells, the 21-year-old suspect, is accused of fatally shooting Morgan while he was picking up his 2-year-old son at a Mid-City daycare.
Videos by Suggest
As reported by WDSU, the incident occurred at around 5 p.m. on Tuesday, September 30. Morgan, a chef at Brennan’s Restaurant in New Orleans, was at the parking lot of Abeon House Child Discovery Center, his son’s daycare located on Canal Street.
Suddently, Wells allegedly approached him, shot him dead, dumped his body in the parking lot, and left his vehicle. The New York Post reported that Wells had shot a passerby and carjacked other cars before he encountered Morgan, police said.
“I just saw a guy walking right there — he just started unloading his gun,” witness Luke Gower told WDSU. “I don’t think he even knew the person. He just aimed at the car and started shooting at it. His gun jammed, according to the homeowner. There I was — the next car in line — so I just feel lucky, I guess.”
As Morgan was shot dead outside the daycare, chaos erupted inside. Quickly, teachers protected the children, potentially saving many lives due to the dangerous nature of the incident.
“What happened was one of the teachers heard the gunfire on Bienville and said, ‘let’s get inside,’” First Grace United Methodist Church pastor Shawn Anglim told WVUE. “They immediately moved all the children inside.”
Suspect Shot, Chef Remembered
Authorities managed to track the stolen vehicle to Interstate 10 in Metairie, WDSU reported. Wells was inside, but he had been shot in the head by an unknown individual. Police said he is in “extremely grave condition at University Medical Center.”
Wells will be charged with first-degree murder should he recover from his wounds.
Many are now mourning the death of Carl Morgan, a chef beloved by his community.
“Everyone is very hurt, very raw. I mean, shocked,” Brennan’s Restaurant general manager Christian Pendleton told WVUE. “What was most important was his son and how much of a dad he was.”
A GoFundMe was launched to help support Morgan’s wife, Lisa, and Silas, the 2-year-old he was supposed to pick up in Mid-City.