IN JAMAICA: CAUGHT! Police hold St Mary suspect, Ian Blake in child sex case whom they said shot at them

 Sunday, July 10, 2016 Jamaica Observer 

The popular St Mary mechanic who is accused of having a sexual encounter with a girl aged eight, and who police said shot at them when they tried to apprehend him, has been caught by law enforcers, the Jamaica Observer can report.

Police held Ian Blake, popularly known as “Signie”, in a pre-dawn operation at his home in Highgate around 4:30 Wednesday morning, ending a near three-month game of hide-and-seek involving himself and the police.

He was sought by police after a relative of the primary school pupil reported to police that the victim was sexually abused by the man, said to be aged over 50, an act that left members of the Highgate community and surrounding areas in shock.

The girl was treated at the Port Maria Hospital and police later released his name as a person of interest.

The incident, which resulted in a complaint being filed to law enforcers, occurred in early April when the man visited the child’s house in a community near to Highgate. Investigators believe that there was prior irregular behaviour by the mechanic.

The accused man fled police when they first went to his house in mid-April with a view to asking him questions relevant to the matter.

Police later confirmed that on April 19, the man was seen driving his vehicle along the Harmony Hall main road, about one kilometre outside of Highgate, and was signalled to stop by a police patrol team. However, he jumped from the car and ran away, and with the police in chase, he slipped behind a building and fired a shot at the bewildered cops who took evasive action.

Since that time, police have tried to apprehend him by going to places at which he was said to frequent, including his house, but came up empty-handed.

“One of the times the police went to his house and him just jump out the back door and run away. It look like somebody was tipping him off whenever the police tried to hold him,” one resident of the community said. Blake has a reputation for being a highly rated mechanic, who even fixes police vehicles when they are in need of repair. more