Mitchell Ventress, 26, of Denham Springs was found dead in the driver’s seat of his vehicle in the McDonald’s parking lot on Highway 16 in Watson on the evening of March 18, 2026. The Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office determined Ventress died from a gunshot wound. Witnesses reported hearing a gunshot and seeing two males exit the passenger side of Ventress’s vehicle immediately afterward.

Investigators identified and later located a suspect vehicle in the Central area of East Baton Rouge Parish. A traffic stop there resulted in the detention of 25-year-old Kevonta Dennis and 26-year-old Keondra McNeely, both of Baton Rouge. A subsequent search warrant at an apartment on Sully Drive led to the arrest of 39-year-old Keedrick Jack, also of Baton Rouge. Authorities say Dennis and Jack had arranged to meet Ventress in the McDonald’s lot to purchase narcotics and that Ventress was shot during that meeting.

All three were initially held in an East Baton Rouge facility before being transported to Livingston Parish for processing. The investigation remains ongoing. Does anyone in the area have information about that March 18 meeting in the McDonald’s parking lot?