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Ex-fire chief found guilty of wife’s murder, cover-up

Charles Mayeux Jr. was found guilty of second-degree murder in the death of his second wife, Shelly Mayeux

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Charles Mayeux Jr., was found guilty of second-degree murder in the death of his second wife, Shelly Mayeux.

Photo/Avoyelles Police

By Jim Mustian
The Advocate

EVERGREEN, La. — An Avoyelles Parish jury late Friday convicted the former police chief of Evergreen of killing his wife before their house burned to the ground in July 2015.

The police chief, Charles Mayeux Jr., was found guilty of second-degree murder in the death of his second wife, Shelly Mayeux, a young mother who worked as a booking officer for the Avoyelles Parish Sheriff’s Office.

Mayeux, 38, faces an automatic life sentence.

“Justice has been served,” said Brant Thompson, chief deputy of the state Fire Marshal’s Office. “This was not an easy case, and the prosecutors and investigators should be recognized for their efforts.”

The verdict capped a sensational case that shocked Evergreen, a town of some 300 residents. Mayeux also served as assistant fire chief of the town for several years and had previously worked as a police officer in nearby Cottonport and Plaucheville.

Shelly Mayeux often reported to her job at the Sheriff’s Office with obvious bruises and other injuries she attributed to her husband’s jealous rages. She was encouraged to report her husband for domestic violence, but friends said she was too afraid to do so.

Authorities said Charles Mayeux had a long history of abusing women -- including his ex-wife -- when they declined to have sex with him.

“Everybody in town knew he did it,” said Tracy Dupuis, a friend and former colleague of Shelly Mayeux, referring to the killing.

The Mayeuxs lived just down Cotton Street from the Evergreen fire station, a proximity that prosecutors underscored during the week-long trial. They noted that Mayeux, after calling 911 on the night of the fire, ran from the first arriving firefighter rather than trying to help extinguish the blaze.

Assistant District Attorney Michael Kelly said in court filings that Charles Mayeux had “impressive” equipment at his disposal at the fire station, including a firetruck that held 1,500 gallons of water and four breathing masks.

Mayeux, who testified in his own defense, denied responsibility for his wife’s death. He speculated before the trial that the blaze had been caused by a fallen candle in the couple’s bedroom, and he insisted he had been asleep in another room when the fire began.

But he offered a series of shifting statements to the authorities and raised suspicions within the state Fire Marshal’s Office when he asked an investigator whether an autopsy would be conducted on his wife.

The autopsy failed to determine a cause of Shelly Mayeux’s death, but it showed that she was dead before the fire began.

Mayeux is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 12 by 12th Judicial District Court Judge Billy Bennett.

Copyright 2017 The Advocate

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