Houma woman played roles in two wrecks on same day
NOLA.com, By Drew Broach, Oct. 27, 2020
Another of the 32 defendants charged with conspiring to stage car accidents in New Orleans and scam insurance companies pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court.
Marvel Francois, 51, of Houma figured in two wrecks caused by "slammer" Damien Labeaud, both on May 17, 2017, according to court records filed by the U.S. attorney's office. In one, she watched from another vehicle as Labeaud crashed a 2004 Ford F-150 pickup truck into a 2006 Freightliner tractor-trailer that was merging onto the Pontchartrain Expressway from Calliope Street.
About an hour later, she was a passenger in a 2007 Dodge Durango that Labeaud slammed into 2017 Peterbuilt tractor-trailer turning from Chickasaw Street onto Louisa Street. Francois presented herself to police as the driver, Labeaud having slipped away with a "spotter" in another vehicle.
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