Former Warren County officer abducted, later found shot and bound on Coast
WARREN COUNTY, Miss. (WLBT) - Multiple agencies are working together to determine how a retired law enforcement officer from Warren County ended up shot near a church on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
The incident spans multiple cities and two states and includes a home invasion and struggle, a police chase, and the victim eventually being found bound and shot near a church.
Multiple WLBT sources identify the retired officer, who survived, as Mike Outzs.
Vicksburg Police Chief Penny Jones says her officers were first called Wednesday to Outzs’ home on Cain Ridge Road by someone who said they had not heard from him in several days. His truck was also missing from the garage.
When officers arrived, they entered the home.
“It was apparent when they went inside the home that something had taken place, including a struggle,” said Jones.
Early Thursday morning, Outzs’ truck was spotted by a police officer in Gulfport. The man driving the truck, later identified as Logan Delena, was able to get away from police, but an arrest warrant was issued.
Thursday afternoon, Gulfport police found Outzs bound with two gunshot wounds near Grace Temple Baptist Church.
He was taken to the hospital, where Chief Jones says he’s stable. Investigators will be talking to Outzs to try and determine what led to this.
“It’s so weird that this has taken place and the only person who can give us more of an explanation of what has happened is the victim,” said Jones. “I’m sure he has a story to tell.”
The saga then continued Thursday night in Gonzales, Louisiana when eight people were detained in connection with this incident.
A spokesperson with the Gonzales Police Department said officers were contacted around 5 p.m. by detectives in Gulfport about a manhunt related to the home invasion and shooting of the law enforcement officer in Vicksburg and other home burglaries in the Gulfport area.
She added warrants were obtained in connection with Gulfport police’s investigation for two people believed to be at a home on West Caroline Street in Gonzales. She said officers saw the people they were looking for get into a vehicle and drive off.
Police said they tried to pull over the vehicle but the driver wouldn’t stop, resulting in a pursuit that ended at LA 44 at LA 42.
Gonzales Police arrested the following people:
| Name | Age | Charges |
|---|---|---|
| Logan Delena | 27 | Fugitive arrest for Harrison County, MS and Vicksburg Police Dept. 7 counts Illegal Possession of Stolen Firearms 1 count Illegal Possession of Stolen Things 1 count Aggravated Flight from an Officer 1 count Possession of Schedule I Control Dangerous Substance 1 count Illegal Carrying of Weapons 1 count Possession of Firearms by Convicted Felon |
| Blake Menefee | 20 | Fugitive arrest for Harrison County, MS 7 counts of Illegal Possession of Stolen Firearms 1 count of Illegal Possession of Stolen Things 1 count Aggravated Flight from an officer 1 count Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana 1 count Illegal Carry of Weapons |
| Susan Zeringue | 40 | 1 count Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin 1 count Possession with Intent to Distribute Schedule II |
| Raven Guidry | 32 | 1 count Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin 1 count Possession with Intent to Distribute Meth |
| Elcee Guillard | 36 | 1 count Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin 1 count Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine |
| Jerry Benoit | 33 | 1 count Possession of Heroin with Intent to Distribute 1 count Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine |
| Richard Morris | 38 | 5 counts Illegal Possession of Stolen Firearms 1 count Possession of Stolen Things |
| Sidney Nelson | 39 | 5 count Illegal Possession of Stolen Firearms 1 count Illegal Possession of Stolen Things |
Vicksburg’s police chief says she hopes once her investigators speak with the victim and the suspects they will have some answers about why this happened.
“There must be something specific about this, not sure what, but I think within the next day or two we’ll probably have more pieces to the puzzle,” said Jones.
Jones says Outzs had been a Game Warden and a Constable in Warren County.
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