Police Captain Clay Higgins, also known as the "Cajun John Wayne," has filmed another direct hit in his Louisiana parish's fight on crime.
St. Landry Crime Stoppers, a local television spot produced by KATC-ABC of the sheriff's office informing the public of local criminals on the loose, has become a cult favorite due to Higgins' stern, straightforward and deadpan delivery of warnings to the felons he wants to catch. He has even been featured on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.
In his latest, Higgins narrates the story of two men who burglarized two beloved local businesses in the area, which included pinching a safe.
"They're common, petty, low-live thieves," he said. "Both of these businesses are owned by generous folk, known in the community as kind and fair. So, Mr. Dumb and Mr. Dumber, you two geniuses find yourself with a whole safe to crack. I can picture you now, beating on it with sledgehammers and wedges ... Idiot clowns with a beat-up safe and a zero future."
Higgins said the two men's "shameful behavior" had been viewed by more than a million people.
"Congratulations, fellas," he said. "Your stupidity is now legendary ... I advise you to turn yourself in, return what you've stolen, and we'll see what we can do to help you."
The Washington Post profiled him in May, when he was a lieutenant:
A muscled Army veteran and hardened street cop who rarely cracks a smile, Higgins may be the most irresistibly intimidating man in America.
He is the rising star of weekly Crime Stoppers segments that have garnered a cult following in the four months since he first went on air. His stern demeanor, back-country drawl and made-for-TV one-liners explain why, in towns across southern Louisiana, he is quickly becoming known as the Cajun John Wayne.
"I got chills just listening to that man talk," a fan wrote recently on Facebook.
"You scare me. In a good way. Makes me feel safe," wrote another.
"Chuck Norris just got replaced," a third person declared.
[...]
For the past seven years, he worked the night shift in St. Landry Parish, a risky, isolated job in which he could go hours without seeing another officer.
"There’s less violent crime in rural areas, but when you go to a disturbance or burglary, you can be a long way from backup," Higgins, a father of three, told The Post. "Gotta be able to handle your business."
In December, Sheriff Bobby J. Guidroz asked Higgins to become the department spokesman. Higgins, who has no experience in communications, cautiously agreed and quickly found himself reading from a weekly Crime Stoppers script that he just couldn’t stomach.
According to the story, Higgins does his own material for the videos and does them in one take. In one April broadcast, his strong words for wanted criminal Ladarious Young to turn himself in were obeyed the next day.