NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - The Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office says it has arrested a man accused of attempting to buy a 10-month-old child in Angie.

According to the sheriff’s office, its Special Investigations Unit and the Angie Police Department opened an investigation on Nov. 26, 2025, after learning that Howell Gene Penton allegedly solicited a woman at the Angie Auction House to purchase her infant daughter.

Investigators conducted an undercover operation on Nov. 29, which led to an arrest warrant for Penton. He was taken into custody the same day without incident.

The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with information about the sale of minor children is asked to call the Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office at 985-839-3434.

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