01/06/2026
A MESSAGE FROM THE SHERIFF
This press release is being made in response to numerous false statements that have been posted, and shared on social media, regarding the disappearance of Bradley Stracener, and the death of Astin O’Banion.
I began my career and took my first oath to uphold the laws of this state in 1985. Since July 1, 2000, I have taken the oath of office as Sheriff of Vernon Parish. This oath is a solemn vow that I do not shirk or shy away from.
At no time have I or anyone with this department, conspired to cover up or conceal anything concerning the disappearance of Bradley Stracener. To say or insinuate this is an absolute false statement, period.
I know the Stracener Family. Bradley’s Uncle was the VPSO maintenance shop foreman for a number of years. I attended the funeral of Bradley’s grandfather, and had visited in the grandfather’s home in years past.
To say, post, and share that this department intentionally covered up or failed to investigate Bradley’s disappearance is an absolute lie.
Every lead, every tip, and every rumor that has been received by this department has been investigated. This continues today and will continue until Bradley’s disappearance has been solved.
This has included numerous searches by foot, searches by specially trained dogs, water searches with trained divers and boats with specialized sonar equipment.
Numerous creeks, old home places, abandoned wells, and old dumps sites in wooded areas are just some of the places that have been searched.
Not a single tip has been ignored.
It has been posted on social media that I advised a local landowner in the Sandy Hill area to deny access of his property to a group of volunteers wanting to search his property.
I in fact told the landowner that we were in the process of organizing a large group of cadaver dogs and handlers, and that it would be best to let this group conduct the search in conjunction with law enforcement. This property was thoroughly searched, with these dogs and their handlers, along with other areas of interest in the Sandy Hill area.
These areas included the location of the vehicle that Bradley was driving, which belonged to his then girlfriend’s grandmother.
Several residences, out buildings, and surrounding properties in the Sandy Hill area have been searched.
On June 26, 2023 Astin O’Banion was arrested by the Louisiana Department of Probation and Parole, for a probation violation. Astin was booked into the VPSO jail and ordered by a Judge to serve 30 days.
On July 5, 2023 Astin asked to speak to a detective. Detective Ben Burwell took the initial statement from her. On July 6, 2023 Detective Burwell again re-interviewed her.
The information that Astin gave was an account, by her, of a series of events that concluded with the death of Bradley Stracener, and the disposal of his body. Astin provided a location of where this was to have occurred and of where Bradley’s body was disposed.
Astin stated that a sexual assault occurred against her at the time of the murder, and that she went to a local hospital following this attack for treatment.
This information was immediately followed up on by Detectives. A very thorough search of an abandoned residence was conducted.
Blood detection chemicals were utilized in an effort to detect any signs of blood. Items described in the interview with Astin were searched for.
Astin stated that Bradley’s body had been weighed down with cinder blocks and kettle bell weights, and thrown over the railing of the Sabine River Bridge on La. Highway 8.
We contacted the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Department to enlist the aid of their dive team. This team responded and spent two full days, utilizing divers and boats with specialized sonar equipment. This team was confident that if the facts were indeed true, they would be able to locate some type of evidence.
No evidence was obtained from any of these searches and descriptions of the scene provided by Astin did not match what Detectives observed at the location. Local medical facilities had no record of Astin having been to the emergency room on the date of the alleged offense or any date even remotely close to that date of the offense.
On July 26, 2023, one month to the day after having been arrested, Astin appeared in District Court. Present during the hearing was her Attorney, the District Attorney’s Office, her Probation Officer, and the presiding Judge. After the court hearing, she was ordered to be released by being given credit for the 30 days served in jail, her probation was reinstated.
Numerous social media posts have been made and shared, stating that Astin was released by the Sheriff’s Department after only serving a few days. This is a completely false statement.
Other social media posts have stated that she died the day after being released from jail. Again, these statements are completely false.
Astin was found deceased on July 31, 2023, 5 days after her court ordered release.
A social media personality stated in a post that Astin’s tongue was cut out, that her ear was cut off, and that her tattoos had been removed. All of this is completely false. Astin’s tongue was intact, her ears were intact, and her tattoos were plainly visible. These very visible tattoos led to quickly identifying the body as Astin after the tattoos were compared to recent jail records which included certain significant identifiers such as tattoos, scars, etc.
There were no significant visible life-threatening injuries to Astin’s body. There was no visible evidence of any knife wounds or gunshot wounds.
The entire area of the trailer park where Astin was discovered was immediately cordoned off and treated as a crime scene. Interviews were immediately conducted with the residents residing in this area.
A nearby residence was determined to be the residence that Astin traveled to when she left the Pickering area the day before her death. A search warrant for this residence was obtained and a search of that residence led to the arrest of the occupants, Shirley Brown and Anthony Carpenter. Both were arrested for the illegal narcotics that were located within their respective bedroom.
The Vernon Parish Coroner’s Office responded to the scene to assist in the investigation. The coroner ordered that Astin’s body be transported to Forensic Medical Management located in Beaumont, Texas, for an autopsy.
This autopsy of Astin’s body revealed that there were no brain injuries, no gunshot wounds, no stab wounds, no physical trauma to the throat area, and no broken bones, and no sexual trauma.
The report revealed a ¾ inch laceration to her right knee. The report also revealed a minor injury to her scalp. Other abrasions were noted on her body. Evidence at the scene shows that Astin fell from a raised porch at a nearby mobile home, striking a metal cage that was situated on concrete pads beside the porch. The porch was approximately 4-5 feet high. Human f***s was found smeared on the door of the residence, the floor of the porch, as well as upon the person of Astin.
None of the noted injuries would have resulted in Astin’s death.
Blood was drawn from Astin by the pathologist during the autopsy. The blood sample was sent to NMS Labs located in Horsham, Pennsylvania at the request of the pathologist in Beaumont.
The results show a concentration of Methamphetamine and Sertraline (Zoloft). This combination has been shown to cause many conditions to include fever, excessive sweating, hallucinations, increased heart rate, changes in blood pressure, seizures, confusion, muscle spasms, tremors, incoordination, stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. This combination of illegal narcotics, along with these symptoms have been known to cause coma and sadly even death.
The Vernon Parish Sheriff’s office does not make any type of social media posts or issue press releases in any type of death investigation unless that death is a homicide. This is done to protect the privacy of the family and as a sign of respect to the decedent.
Social media posts have been made in reference to bones that were found by the Sabine River Bridge. These bones were retrieved by a VPSO Deputy. Photographs of the bones were sent to LSU FACES (Forensic Anthropology and Computer Enhancement Services) Lab, and they ruled these bones to be animal bones. Bradley’s mother was advised of this fact.
Social media posts have also stated that I ordered all VPSO employees to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement, preventing all employees from speaking about Astin O’Banion or Bradley Stracener.
A Pineville Louisiana Attorney mailed a Freedom of Information request to me, requesting a copy of the Non-Disclosure Form. I responded back through the attorney for the Louisiana Sheriff’s Association. This response was a categorical denial that any such type of paperwork exists. Just another complete false statement made on a social media platform.
This department was accused on a person’s social media platform, of having hacked that person’s social media account. This is a blatant lie.
A short time later, Danny Kay was accused of having hacked this person’s account. Danny Kay is a Louisiana Department of Corrections Inmate and has been housed at Claiborne Correctional Center since March 14, 2025 and is still currently housed there.
Mr. Kay has been incarcerated since July 21, 2024. Neither any VPSO employee nor I had anything to do with the alleged hacking incident. Once again, another complete false statement circulated on social media.
The Louisiana State Police recently arrested a former Allen Parish Sheriff’s Deputy for 428 counts of Distributing / Acquiring / Dissemination of a Criminal History Records, one count of Trespass Against a State Computer, and one count of Malfeasance in Office. These incidents were directly related to this law enforcement officer’s involvement with a social media personality providing misinformation relating to the Bradley Stracener Case. The 428 counts were the result of the Deputy utilizing law enforcement databases to obtain personal identifying information on numerous people. The Deputy then shared the prohibited information with a social media personality who disseminated the protected information on social media.
As a former State Trooper, I have always maintained a close working relationship with the Louisiana State Police. This department has enlisted their assistance on many occasions, to include the Bradley Stracener Case.
We have partnered previously with the FBI, DEA , Attorney General, and the State Police on narcotics cases that extended beyond our parish jurisdiction.
We are currently partnering with these State and Federal agencies on several cases that originated right here in Vernon Parish, and have been ongoing for approximately 2 years.
The spirit of cooperation has always existed and will continue to exist between our local, State, and Federal Partners.
As Sheriff, I am duty bound to uphold the laws of this Parish and State. To those who have maliciously posted completely false allegations, you obviously have no qualms about what lengths you will go to in order to distort the truth and garner attention.
To insinuate that I would allow the cover up and distortion of the facts of the Stracener and O’Banion cases is quite simply a statement made out of pure unadulterated ignorance.
When VPSO employees break the law, I deal with those situations accordingly. But when employees are maliciously attacked on social media, when the integrity of this department is questioned, I will stand up and defend the employees and this department with everything that I have. My employees and I will continue to proudly serve the people of Vernon Parish to the absolute best of our abilities. Whether it is assisting an elderly person with a flat tire or handling a criminal investigation we will continue to conduct ourselves with dignity and honor and provide the highest level of service possible.
I will not go back and forth with people on social media.
The resolve of this department remains steadfast and constant. We will not be pressured or coerced into taking any law enforcement action in any case that we cannot justify in a court of law.
I will gladly answer questions from the public or the media at anytime, be it in person or by telephone call, in regards to any questions that may arise from this release.
VPSO Sheriff John S. "Sam" Craft
