Michael Fusilier, III, known to friends as "Mikey," was a 19-year-old man from Lafayette, Louisiana, remembered for his goofy, witty, and easily lovable personality. A native of New Iberia, he was a 2025 graduate of New Iberia Senior High School and was enrolled as a student at South Louisiana Community College, where he was pursuing an associate degree. Those who knew him said he was respectful, upholding, and always found ways to make people feel better.
He is survived by his mother, Jessica Ann Derouen Fusilier, a brother, a sister, his paternal grandmother, and his girlfriend, Lillie Spencer Lee, along with a host of other relatives and friends who cherished him. He was preceded in death by his father and paternal grandfather.
On the evening of Friday, October 2, 2026, the St. Martin Parish Sheriff’s Office received a call about a shooting. Deputies responded shortly before 7:45 p.m. to the 1000 block of Bayou Alexandre Highway in St. Martinville, a city in the heart of Acadiana. There, they discovered Michael Fusilier, who had sustained multiple gunshot wounds. Emergency services transported him to Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center, but he was pronounced dead at the hospital. The initial reports from law enforcement did not immediately name any suspects or elaborate on the circumstances that led to the fatal shooting.
The investigation into Michael's death was handled by detectives with the St. Martin Parish Sheriff’s Office under Sheriff Becket Breaux. In the days following the shooting, investigators worked to piece together the events of that evening. Their work led to the identification of three suspects. Within a week, the sheriff's office announced it had secured arrest warrants.
On October 8, 2026, two of the suspects were apprehended in neighboring Iberia Parish with the assistance of the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Marshals Service. Kason Sias Jr., 18, and Carter Williams, 22, both from New Iberia, were taken into custody. A week later, on the morning of October 15, the third suspect, 17-year-old Jenarius Johnson of Lafayette, was arrested in Lafayette by U.S. Marshals and the Lafayette Police Department.
Following their arrests, all three suspects were booked into the St. Martin Parish Correctional Center. Kason Sias Jr. and Jenarius Johnson were both charged with First Degree Murder. Carter Williams was charged with Principal to First Degree Murder. Authorities did not release information about a possible motive for the killing.
A home-going celebration for Michael's life was held on Saturday, October 10, 2026, at the Lighthouse Missionary Baptist Church in New Iberia. Following the service, he was laid to rest in the mausoleum of Holy Family Cemetery. Friends and family remembered him through an online memorial, where dozens of virtual candles were lit in his honor.
The investigation into Michael Fusilier's death was declared ongoing by the St. Martin Parish Sheriff's Office following the arrests. As of October 2026, the three individuals accused in connection with his murder were in custody and facing charges. Anyone with information about the case was asked to contact the St. Martin Parish Sheriff’s Office at (337)-394-3070 or St. Martin Crime Stoppers at (337)-441-3030.
