UPDATE, Jan. 18, 5:30 p.m. – And now we’ve got a number to call if folks have information on who this clown is.

Anyone with information is asked to call Special Victims Unit Detective Corey M. Lyons at 504-658-5523 or Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111.

UPDATE, Jan. 18, 4:00 p.m. – Looks like the wheels are finally moving. From WWL…

New Orleans police say they are asking the public for help finding a person of interest who performed “sexual battery” on a passed out LSU fan on Bourbon Street hours after the BCS National Championship Game.

The NOPD released still images from a controversial video released that went viral earlier this week.

NOPD officials say the department launched an investigation after it was made aware of the video earlier this week.

“The police department became aware of this Sunday,” said NOPD Superintendent Ronal Serpas, “and the investigation techniques that we’re using really are best kept within out department for right now. As soon as we have any information to release we will do so.”

The person of interest is described as a white man, approximately 5’7” to 5’11” tall, medium build, unshaven facial hair and wearing a University of Alabama jacket with a white t-shirt.

Christopher Bowman, a spokesman for the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office, called the act caught on video “disgusting.”

“The incident captured on video following the BCS game was clearly disgusting. If and when the police department makes an arrest in this case, then the case, pursuant to normal procedures, will be evaluated for prosecution,” he said. “In the meantime, the District Attorney remains focused on the prosecution of murderers, crimes of violence, and illegal weapons – the cases that are fueling this city’s increasing murder rate.”

We’ve delved into this story a couple of times already, here and here.

And one of the things we’re most irritated about is the initial reaction to it by the New Orleans Police Department, which has assumed its usual “Not Our Problem, Dude” attitude about the case and the commencement of an investigation into it. NOPD wrongly asserted the victim needed to come forward and press charges before they could do anything; that was debunked in the strongest terms by East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore yesterday.

The issue of whether an investigation or prosecution could begin is heating up, though it’s entirely likely it’ll be resolved shortly. WDSU-TV in New Orleans had this last night…

“The fact that it could happen with that additional amount of police officers being available is absolutely appalling and the reaction to it, to me, is pretty appalling,” said Dale Standifier with the Metropolitan Center for Women and Children.

New Orleans police said their Sex Crimes Unit was aware of the incident and was waiting to be contacted by the victim before taking action.

“The man was obviously passed out, intoxicated and unable to defend himself, and he was assaulted,” Standifier said. “He was sexually assaulted, and humiliated and tormented while people cheered, and he shouldn’t have to stand up for himself and say, ‘I want to press charges.’ The city should be pressing charges and trying to move forward. If you had a murder victim, you can’t expect the victim himself, the corpse, to testify.”

On the other hand, New Orleans DA Leon Cannizzaro was on Fox 8’s newscast in New Orleans yesterday to discuss a number of criminal issues, and he repeated the line that his office can’t do anything until charges are filed…

Cannizzaro’s comments on the Krystal case kick in at the 2:45 mark. If the embed doesn’t load, go to this link and click on the “Update from Leon Cannizzaro” link. It’s the 4th one from the top.

There’s a story going around at this point in which Moore is now pushing Cannizzaro to prosecute the case and is asking for a meeting to get an explanation why Cannizzaro thinks he needs the victim to press charges.

This might all be moot very soon, since Deadspin.com reports, perhaps as an inference from Cannizzaro’s comments on Fox 8, that the victim now has an attorney and charges are forthcoming once the perp is identified.

But what about the Krystal burger restaurant which served as the venue for the sexual battery in question? It isn’t like Krystal’s employees are particularly active in putting a stop to the attack on that video; one of them shows up midway through it and halfheartedly attempts to disperse the mob of Alabama fans surrounding the victim; not to much result.

Krystal’s corporate headquarters is sending out communiques to those who have approached them to complain about their handling of the case. It’s a classic piece of corporate CYA…

Thank you for your recent concern about the incident that occurred during the night of the National Championship game. We too are appalled by the video on the internet where Alabama fans are seen sexually assaulting an LSU fan who is passed out. This has never happened at one of our restaurants. What you don’t see on the video and what we have on our own security video is that once the employee sees the Alabama fans surrounding this fan who is passed out, he goes to get the manager who promptly comes out and disperses the crowd. Unfortunately most of the actions had stopped by then and the manager did not know what was going on. The main concern of the manager was the LSU fan. Once she woke the fan up and stayed with him a while to make sure he was ok, he then left on his own recognizance.

We thank you for your concern and for contacting us on this matter.

Hooray for the suits.

This thing is developing fairly quickly. It’s unlikely it will play out without the LSU-Alabama rivalry becoming quite a bit nastier.