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They came for fun in N.O. - they still haven't left after getting caught in crime spree

Terry Brennan and his wife Cynthia Newport were in New Orleans in late April to take in the hospitality the city has to offer and instead got victimized in a crime spree that still has them here, but not for fun.

Terry Brennan and his wife Cynthia Newport were in New Orleans in late April to take in the hospitality the city has to offer and instead got victimized in a crime spree that still has them here, but not for fun.

“We were going to go on a riverboat ride. We were going to go to the plantations. We were going to do everything that represented New Orleans,” said Brennan, who is from New Mexico.

He and Newport had just finished lunch at Antoine’s and were on their way to do some other outings with a friend, 87-year-old Leo Gonzales.

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Meanwhile, elsewhere in the city, police said 25-year-old Charles Williams was on a violent crime spree, shooting at least five people at three different locations, attempting to carjack one vehicle and then actually carjacking another.

The carjacking attempt that failed resulted in 38-year-old Ricky Goins being shot and eventually killed. Goins kept driving and eventually lost control of the vehicle as he struggled with his wounds. His vehicle smashed into the one with Brennan, Newport and Gonzales in the 2400 block of Elysian Fields.

Brennan’s injuries were minor but Newport and Gonzales weren’t as fortunate. Gonzales broke several ribs and fractured his spine. Newport had multiple fractures, broke her hip, her pelvis and her femur.

More than two and a half weeks later both are on the road to recovery, but Brennan is trying to get his wife home to New Mexico, but doctors aren’t sure she could tolerate a commercial flight. A special medical flight would cost $18,000. A long distance ambulance ride is less, but still a big cost.

They have started a GoFundMe page to help pay for the costs. In the meantime though, they say they are more concerned about the family of Ricky Goins.

“It’s a sad situation,” said Brennan. “Especially for Erica Goins, I mean really. She lost. We are alive. She has to deal with that loss and it’s sad.”

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