A 28-year-old Amite man was arrested recently in connection with a June burglary in the Pine community, according to Chief Deputy Mike Haley of the Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office.

Haley said that WPSO detectives were investigating an early June burglary that occurred at a residence on Highway 62 in the Pine community, and developed information that led to the arrest of Kacey Lee Lanier, 28, a resident of East Bell Road in Amite.

Detectives determined that Lanier was traveling with a motorist in Washington Parish when he got into an argument with an unidentified driver who then dropped Lanier off on Highway 62, Haley said. Lanier then reportedly made his way to a residence that was under renovation, burglarized that residence, and then called for an unidentified person from Tangipahoa Parish to pick him up.

Haley said that as Lanier was walking around the area waiting for someone to pick him up, he was noticed by several citizens, who were able to give a good description. When his ride finally arrived, Lanier allegedly loaded the stolen items and also hooked up a utility trailer and Kubota tractor and hauled them with him when he left to return to Tangipahoa Parish.

After determining that the person of interest was Lanier, detectives were able to locate him in Tangipahoa Parish and have him arrested and brought back to Washington Parish, Haley said.

He was placed in jail on Friday, June 9, and released Sunday after posting a $3,500 bond. The investigation into the burglary continues and Sheriff Randy Seal asks that any person who has knowledge of the location of the stolen tractor and trailer to please contact Detective Lieutenant Tom Anderson at 985-661-2024.

According to an October 2016 article posted on Baton Rouge’s WBRZ website, this is not Lanier’s first encounter with the law, Haley said.

The article states that Lanier was arrested by the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office in 2016 for obstruction of justice after he allegedly helped a murder suspect by allowing him into his home and helping him hide the gun used in the murder. Then, according to the article, Lanier drove the murder suspect to another area where the murder suspect stole a truck. Also, the article states, Lanier helped the murder suspect obtain another gun that was used in a later drive-by shooting. Details concerning Lanier’s incarceration and release in Tangipahoa Parish are not known at this time, Haley said.

“There is more to this entire matter than meets the eye,” Washington Parish Sheriff Randy Seal said. “Our detective division will continue to work on this case and will see it through to the end. It seems obvious that Lanier chooses to live his life outside the boundaries of the law.

“As long as he continues down that path, we will continue to pursue all leads necessary to put him back in jail and to recover all of the stolen property.”