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S u n d ay, M a r c h 9, 2025
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A family’s epic flight to freedom
Afghan refugees sought by Taliban get new life in Baton Rouge BY PATRICK SLOAN-TURNER Staff writer
For nearly four years, a couple and their two children have lived in hiding. A year spent almost entirely indoors. Other times, moving constantly to evade Pakistani immi-
gration officials. Countless nights silencing their children’s cries, desperate to remain unseen and avoid deportation or capture. That’s how former Afghan prosecutor Freshta, her husband, Hadi, and their two small children have existed since 2021, hunted by the Taliban since the terrorist group
took control of the country. But on Thursday night, as the couple and their 4-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter walked through the gates of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, their nightmare finally ended. “This is how freedom looks like,” Hadi said to his wife. “There’s no
police coming for you, and there’s no fear of being deported to Afghanistan.” Before the Taliban retook power in Afghanistan, Freshta was one of many prosecutors in Kabul who worked alongside American military officials to prosecute crimes committed by the terrorist group.
‘BRIGHT SPOT’ Picard Park overhaul promises to restore an aging Milton childhood standby
The family has asked to be identified only by their first names and requested not to appear in photos because of continued fears of retaliation. The couple were at ground zero when Kabul fell in 2021 as American troops withdrew. They were within earshot when a suicide bomb detonated on Aug. 26, 2021,
ä See FREEDOM, page 4A
State leaders mull FEMA future Disaster agency under review
BY MARK BALLARD | Staff writer
STAFF PHOTOS By LESLIE WESTBROOK
Tipper Esponge, left, and his father, Chris Esponge, right, both with E&L Construction Group, look over improvement construction plans with project coordinator Nathan Leleux, top left, and Tim Sensley, director of Parks, Arts, Recreation and Culture for Lafayette Consolidated Government, during a groundbreaking for improvements to Picard Park in Milton on Friday. Planned improvements include a new bathroom and concession stand building and pickleball courts. BY MEGAN WYATT | Staff writer Picard Park in Milton has hosted countless youth sporting events over the years but has seen few renovations in the five decades since its construction. Rep. Troy Hebert, who grew up playing ball at the Lafayette Consolidated Government park, was there Friday when a $1.1 million renovation project was announced. He said the renovation is long overdue. “That’s the same original stand I used to buy barbecue burgers from when I was a kid,” Hebert said. “It’s a much-needed upgrade, without a doubt.” The park will soon get new pickleball courts, bathrooms, accessible parking, a picnic area and a concession area. Construction is set to begin this month and wrap before the end of the year at 130 Park Lane. “Milton has a special place in this administration’s heart because of the — I guess the different projects,” said Lafayette Parish Mayor-President Monique Boulet, alluding to the nearby controversial drainage project inherited from the previous administration. “But it is a beautiful part of the parish … and so this is the bright spot.” It was a vocal group of Milton residents who pushed for the renovation project. They formed the Picard Park Committee and pressed parish and state lawmakers to find the funds to make it a reality. Some of those same residents are also pushing Boulet and her team to finish work on the Homewood Detention Ponds located less than a mile from the park. A public meeting on that proj-
WASHINGTON — The Federal Emergency Management Agency may not close entirely — as President Donald Trump says he’s open to — but it appears the disaster relief agency is in for rearranging. Trump created a FEMA Review Council, which will convene in April, to report on the agency’s strengths and failings and make recommendations for changes by summer. A U.S. House committee hearing last week floated several ideas — including letting states carry more of the disaster Trump burden. That would cause dramatic challenges for storm-prone Louisiana, which is particularly reliant on FEMA. Since 2003, Louisiana has received nearly $47 billion to recover from 28 disasters, according to a January Carnegie Endowment report. Meanwhile, Trump has cut FEMA’s budget and fired 200 probationary employees while trying to force out another 800 in an agency with about 17,000 workers. Some emergency officials and members of Con-
ä See FEMA, page 5A
Has Mardi Gras gotten too big for Mamou? Police warn of increased crowds, security concerns BY STEPHEN MARCANTEL | Staff writer
Lafayette Mayor-President Monique Boulet and state Rep. Troy Hebert chat during the groundbreaking for improvements to Picard Park on Friday. ect is scheduled for 6 p.m. March 18 at the Milton Civic Center. After getting $100,000 approved by the Lafayette Parish Council for the park project, advocates were able to secure another $1 million from the state with help from Sen. Page Cortez and Hebert. “The restroom area is very old,” said Bob Bixenman,
ä See PARK, page 4A
Sarah Bias tended to customers behind the counter of the Mamou Superette on Friday. She grabbed cigarettes and chatted up regulars waiting in line in the busy convenience store. Overall, it was a regular day in the small Evangeline Parish town of Mamou. In normal times, the just under 3,000 residents would be recovering from the town’s yearly Mardi Gras celebration, which brings thousands of visitors. But a few blocks south of the store, police tape hung from a stop sign at the corner of Sixth and Pine streets — where, on Tuesday, two people were killed and 12 were injured in a mass shooting at an outdoor zydeco concert. The incident was the second shooting during Mardi Gras week in Mamou; three others were injured in a
ä See MAMOU, page 5A
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100TH yEAR, NO. 252