Port Allen Man Who Went Missing During May Flood Arrested

Here's a bit of a wild story. It's a mystery solved too.

You may recall the torrential flooding that took place across the state in May, in particular the Baton Rouge area. Well, a man who went missing during those floods has been found.

30-year-old Alfredo Rojas Alvarado went missing when a car he was driving became submerged in a canal back in May during the floods.

Officials said a black sedan with three people in it crashed into a canal on LA 415 north of I-10 on the night of May 17. The vehicle became submerged and one passenger, Heremelindo Morentes, became stuck in the car and died.

Two witnesses and the other passenger who survived the crash told deputies on the scene that they saw Alvarado get sucked into a culvert under LA 415 by the fast-moving current. First responders searched that evening and again the next day but were unable to find him.

Well, apparently Alvarado didn't get sucked into the culvert. Instead, he made it to the bank of the canal and was able to walk home that night.

Alvarado contacted an attorney shortly after the incident and on June 15 went to Louisiana State Police Troop A with his lawyer and a translator and made a statement about the crash to investigators. He said that he did not make contact with first responders at the scene because he did not have a U.S. driver's license and feared being deported back to Guatemala.

An arrest warrant was issued for Alvarado on June 25 and he was arrested into the West Baton Rouge Parish Jail on Monday, June 28.

Alvarado has been charged with hit and run, careless operation, and driving without a license.