LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) – Federal prosecutors in Lafayette have disclosed that a high-ranking Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) official took a payoff from a man for a contract signed with a private company in October 2021.
As reported by The Advocate, records obtained by The Times-Picayune showed that the official who signed the contract was the agency’s secretary, Jack Montoucet.
The documents show that Montoucet, who was appointed as secretary in 2017 and is a resident of Scott, was involved in the kickback scheme, according to the Advocate.
It was also reported that the news of an LDWF official being involved in a bribery scheme came after Dusty Guidry, of Youngsville, pled guilty to payoffs on three counts in connection to his work with the DA’s office in Lafayette.
According to the Advocate, documents also show that “Guidry conspired with an unnamed LDWF official to steer contracts with the department to a private company that handled hunting and boating licenses and that offered pre-trial diversions for those who had committed minor violations on issues overseen by the department.”
The company also agreed to make payoffs to the LDWF official who signed the contracts and Guidry, according to the Advocate. The LDWF official was allegedly going to receive a kickback and a $14,000 all-terrain vehicle.
Montoucet has not been charged with a crime, according to the Advocate.
