Department of Agriculture and Forestry, State of Louisiana - Mike Strain DVM, Commissioner

Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain, D.V.M., said Judge Thomas Yeager of the 9th Judicial Court in Alexandria issued a bench warrant for a Pineville man for failing to appear in court to answer charges of operating an illegal structural pest control business by spraying the inside of two houses for roaches and other pests.

Joseph Campbell, 646 Barron Chapel Road, was charged and found guilty April 22 by the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry’s Structural Pest Control Commission for conducting a structural pest control business without a license, operating without proper pesticide registration and without a proper bond.  The Commission fined Campbell $15,000, the maximum allowed by state rules, and referred the case to the 9th Judicial Court in Alexandria.

Operating an illegal pest control business is a criminal misdemeanor under the Structural Pest Control Law.  The Rapides Parish District Attorney’s office issued a criminal misdemeanor summons to Campbell with an arraignment scheduled for September 25. When Campbell failed to appear the court issued a bench warrant for his arrest.

David Fields, assistant director of the LDAF Pesticide and Environmental Programs, said Campbell quit his job with a central Louisiana pest control service but continued to illegally do structural pest control work.

“Pest control operators must be licensed and bonded professionals,” Strain said. “Anyone who is treating your home or business with pesticides needs to be properly trained to ensure that you and your family will not be exposed to any potentially dangerous substances.”

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