Death and robbery under investigation

Published 3:45 pm Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Picayune Police investigators are looking into an unsolved death and an incident where an unidentified man made entry into a home he said he thought was someone else’s.

Johnny McCain, 29, of 19408 Riverline Dr., Saucier, was determined to be dead when Bryan Stewart, 31, of 55 Ramsey Hall Rd., Poplarville, who was driving the car the two men were in, noticed he could not be awakened. Stewart was in Picayune at the time he stopped, about 11:30 p.m. Monday.

The two men had spent much of the day and afternoon on a trip to New Orleans, visiting several places while they were there.

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A report at the Picayune Police Department states that Stewart picked up McCain at about 3:30 p.m. Monday from Louisiana Lumber in Covington, La. and afterward they made several stops. Some of those stops were at various stores, including a daiquiri store, the home of one of McCain’s girlfriends, Bourbon Street and then at Visions Men’s Club to look for another of McCain’s girlfriends.

On the way back from New Orleans, the two men stopped on Interstate 10 near Slidell, La. to change a flat tire. The report states that four people stopped and helped to change the tire. As the tire was being changed, Stewart said he noticed McCain had fallen asleep at about 10 p.m., according to the police report.

After arriving in Picayune, Stewart could not awaken McCain, so he called 911 at about 11:30 p.m., according to the report. A Picayune police dispatcher advised him to wait where he was, which was in front of Roseland Park Baptist church. When emergency responders and a police officer arrived, McCain was pronounced dead on scene. His cause of death is under investigation.

While the officer spoke to Stewart about the incident, he noticed Stewart was about to fall asleep and could not stand without leaning on the patrol car. Stewart told the officer he consumed about three 12 ounce beers. Stewart was then charged with public drunk.

On Tuesday at about 1 a.m., a man robbed a residence on Quince Street of an owl-shaped bank containing about $2.

During the night, a woman living at the residence remembered hearing the door bell ring twice, but she did not get up to see who it was. After the alarm system went off indicating the front door was open, she awakened her husband so he could investigate the commotion, the report states.

The man picked up a bat and proceeded to check out the situation, where he found a light-skinned black man, about 18 to 25 in age; five feet, nine inches in height and weighing about 175 to 180 pounds. The man had short black hair and was wearing a white shirt with dark pants and had a dark-colored shirt thrown over one arm, the report states.

After seeing the man in his home, the resident asked the suspect what he was doing there. The suspect said that he was looking for someone and he thought he was in the wrong home. The resident then asked the suspect to leave though the way he came, so the suspect jumped through the open kitchen window. The homeowner said the window, which had been covered by a screen, was left open that night to allow ventilation.

During the investigation, the homeowner noticed three ceramic animals were missing, a cat, a skunk and an owl. Two of those items were recovered, but the owl bank that contained about $2 was not, the report states. The report did not state if the other two items also were banks.

Investigators are still looking for the suspect.