By Ramon Antonio Vargas
The Advocate
NEW ORLEANS — An Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office lieutenant was found dead inside the gym at the New Orleans Police Department’s headquarters Tuesday afternoon, officials said.
Fred Austin, 55, joined the Sheriff’s Office in February 2015, after retiring as an NOPD member. He was serving on the Investigative Services Bureau’s Force Investigative Team at the time of his death, a Sheriff’s Office spokesman said.
While the Sheriff’s Office did not release a cause of death for Austin, it is possible he died from a heart attack while working out, said NOPD Capt. Michael Glasser, the Police Association of New Orleans’ president.
Glasser said Austin spent much of his NOPD career in the homicide section as a detective and supervisor. Glasser remembered Austin as “effective, very well thought of, very well-liked and very competent.”
“We were sorry to see him retire when he did, but we were delighted that he stayed in law enforcement,” Glasser said.
Sheriff Marlin Gusman expressed condolences for Austin’s family in a statement Tuesday.
“On behalf of the entire (Sheriff’s Office) family, I’m saddened to hear to Lt. Austin’s passing,” Gusman’s statement said.
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