HAMMOND - A special gang taskforce said it uncovered an attempted murder suspect trying to intimidate a witness in a separate case.

"Toine" Cyprian, 22, was already in jail when detectives learned of the scheme and added an obstruction of justice charge to the ones he's already facing: attempted murder and accessory after the fact to murder.

Hammond Police said its Gang Unit found Cyprian was using the Tangipahoa Parish Jail messaging system to send threatening messages to a witness in a recent murder trial.  Police said Cyprian would message family and friends who would then circulate the messages on various forms of social media.

Cyprian was previously arrested, police said, for helping his younger sibling evade law enforcement while on the run for a murder in 2020.

"Without witness cooperation in criminal cases, especially cases involving violent crimes, our community cannot rid the streets of gangs and violence that attempt to intrude on the peace, safety and wellbeing of our families," police wrote in a message posted on its Facebook Page.