Body of Baton Rouge therapist found in Tangipahoa Parish

TANGIPAHOA PARISH, La. (WAFB) – A prominent Baton Rouge psychiatrist was found murdered and wrapped in a tarp along a road in Tangipahoa Parish, investigators said.

Investigators say 69-year-old Dr. William Nicholas Abraham of Baton Rouge died from a “violent attack” with blunt force trauma to the head, neck and shoulders.

“It was a very physical and very violent attack,” Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff Gerald Sticker said. “He was hit on the head, shoulders and neck. There was a lot of bruising, what have you got?”

Those who knew the therapist said they were stunned by his death.

“He was kind, loving, a gentle man and frankly not the type of man that something like this would have happened to,” Jarrett Ambeau said. “I am absolutely devastated and completely surprised that something like this could happen to a man who I believe is so tender and so gentle and has such a heart of service.”

The doctor’s stolen vehicle was recovered Monday afternoon on Sherwood Forest Boulevard in Baton Rouge. A person in the vehicle crashed, got out and fled on foot. This person was not arrested.

Later Monday evening, the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office released images of a person of interest. Officers said the person was seen on surveillance images from the store and was the last known person to drive Abraham’s vehicle.

RELATED: Person of interest wanted in murder investigation of Baton Rouge therapist

The Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office said a passerby discovered the doctor’s body Sunday morning, dumped along Highway 51 between Fluker and the village of Tangipahoa. No weapon was found at the scene and investigators believe the murder occurred somewhere on Saturday and his body was later dumped on the highway.

On Monday afternoon, Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff Gerald Sticker asked the public for help in finding the killer. Sticker said his office is seeking “any information the public can give us to help us put together the picture from Saturday evening before he was ultimately murdered – which we believe happened sometime Saturday evening.”

Tangipahoa Parish officials say they are focused on figuring out where the murder occurred.

A search of the victim’s home in East Baton Rouge Parish revealed no evidence that a crime had been committed there, investigators said.

Anyone with information about this case is asked to contact the Tangipahoa Parish Criminal Investigation Bureau at 985-902-2008. To remain anonymous, tipsters should call the Crime Stoppers of Tangipahoa tip line at 1-800-554-5245 or visit www.tangicrimestoppers.com.

“We’re just asking anyone in the public who knows our victim, whether they saw him Saturday evening, to please call the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office or Crime Stoppers,” Sheriff Sticker said.

The visit of Dr. Abraham is scheduled for Monday, October 7th. It will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. at St. Elizabeth Catholic Church in Clarksdale, Mississippi. A memorial service and reception will follow the viewing at McKenna Hall.

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