National Clothesline

The community of Slidell, LA, was shocked recently when the murdered body of local drycleaner Louis Ferrari, 61, was discovered at his home on Sept. 5. Employees of Ferrari’s plant, Corporate Cleaners, described him as “kind, hardworking and giving.”

After investigating the crime, local authorities arrested Jerry Moore, 43, a long-time employee of Ferrari’s, along with Jesse Montejo, 23 and Eric Gai, 17.

According to investigators, the three men had originally conspired to rob Ferrari’s home when he wasn’t there.

The plan was hatched shortly after Moore had sub-contracted Montejo to run errands for Corporate Cleaners, including picking up a small amount of cash from Ferrari at his house. When Montejo noticed that Ferrari kept a large quantity of cash there, he informed Moore and they decided to steal it on Thursday evening because Ferrari habitually dined out with his family that night.

Unfortunately, Ferrari went home unexpectedly to drop off groceries that night prior to meeting his wife at a local restaurant. He surprised Montejo and a struggle ensued, according to police.

During his confession, Montejo admitted that he had used Ferrari’s own handgun to shoot him in the torso. Montejo also told police that he fired a second fatal shot to the head when Ferrari fought back.

Afterward, Montejo fled the scene with a bag of money in Ferrari’s Lincoln Town Car, which he later abandoned. Detectives could not specify exactly how much was in the bag because some of it wasn’t recovered. They estimated the total at over $800, based on several bills the men had paid with the stolen money.

Authorities were able to solve the crime quickly thanks in part to a witness who had tipped them off that he had seen the Town Car and a blue van, owned by Montejo, suspiciously driving together the next morning. Gai was the other driver.

All three men were charged equally with first degree murder. Investigating Sheriff Jack Strain emphasized that the motive was strictly for financial gain only and not a personal vendetta.

Neighbors of Ferrari commented to local newspapers that he was a selfless, trusting man who was known to employ ex-convicts because he believed people deserved a second chance.

One of those second chances was given to Moore, who Ferrari originally hired after he had been arrested for burglarizing his car.

Montejo was also an ex-convict. His 24-page rap sheet contained numerous armed burglary charges. He had been released from a Florida prison following a 6-year sentence only two months prior to shooting Ferrari.

R.R. Street & Co., Inc. will offer two seminars instructed by Kenney Slatten during the month of November.

The first will cover hands-on stain removal techniques and meet at Allyson Supply in Harahan, LA, on Nov. 2. For information, call (504) 734-1863.

Two sessions on cleaning with DF 2000 — one in English and one in Spanish — will be presented on Nov. 9 at Industrial Equipment & Supplies in Miami, FL. Call (305) 324-0410 for more information.