Authorities captured a Mississippi fugitive at a hotel and arrested a second suspect in Florida in the same investigation.
METAIRIE, LA — A 20-year-old Mississippi man accused in seven human trafficking cases was arrested Friday after a SWAT operation lasting more than three hours at a Metairie hotel, according to authorities and local news reports.
Dezmon Clinton was taken into custody shortly after 1 p.m. on July 10 following an operation involving Jefferson Parish deputies and federal and local law enforcement agencies. Authorities said Clinton initially refused to surrender, leading tactical officers to secure part of the hotel and work to remove him from the property.
The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office listed Clinton as a fugitive following his arrest. Mississippi authorities accuse him of seven counts of human trafficking, but detailed allegations supporting those counts had not been publicly released as of Monday. The charges are accusations, and Clinton is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Authorities also arrested 22-year-old Akasia Crowley in Jacksonville, Florida, in connection with the investigation. Crowley faces seven human trafficking counts, according to reports citing investigators. Officials did not immediately disclose when she was arrested, where she was being held or whether extradition proceedings had begun.
The Metairie operation began after 9:30 a.m. and included the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office SWAT team, the U.S. Marshals Service, the FBI and the New Orleans Police Department’s Special Victims Unit, according to reports. Officers remained at the hotel for more than three hours before Clinton was taken into custody.
No injuries were reported during the operation. Authorities did not release information about whether other people were inside the room with Clinton or whether any suspected trafficking victims were located at the hotel. Investigators also did not describe the evidence that led them to the property.
Sherri Combs, identified by WDSU as the director of a Mississippi organization that assists trafficking survivors, said people suspected of trafficking often move between hotels and across jurisdictions to avoid detection. That movement can require several law enforcement agencies to coordinate searches, arrests and services for possible victims.
Clinton’s arrest was recorded in the Jefferson Parish jail system on July 10 under a fugitive charge, with no bond set on that listing. The local record did not include the seven Mississippi trafficking counts because those allegations originated outside Louisiana. Authorities had not announced when Clinton would be returned to Mississippi.
Officials have not publicly identified any alleged victims or disclosed their ages. They also have not said whether Clinton and Crowley knew each other, what roles they are accused of having or how long the alleged activity was under investigation. No attorney information for either suspect was immediately available in the reviewed reports.
The investigation remained active Monday. Additional details about the trafficking allegations, court appearances and possible extradition proceedings had not been released.
Author note: Last updated July 13, 2026.