Suspect arrested on robbery warrant when officers find him passed out in crashed car, police say

Stock image | Photo by Matt Gush/iStock/Getty Images Plus, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — A suspect was arrested on warrants after he was allegedly found intoxicated and asleep inside of a vehicle that had crashed into a parked car on Tabernacle Street.

On Saturday, officers were dispatched to an incident involving a car that had crashed into a parked vehicle on Tabernacle Street shortly after 5 a.m. The reporting party told emergency dispatch the driver was still inside of the car and appeared to be “passed out behind the wheel,” according to the probable cause statement filed in support of the arrest.

Officers arrived to find the driver still asleep inside of the SUV, which was still running and in gear. The vehicle had crashed into the rear bumper of a parked passenger car. When officers opened the driver’s side door, they smelled a strong odor of alcohol and woke up the driver after a couple of attempts.

While speaking with the driver, identified as 21-year-old Daimon Rashawn Blake, officers noted he was slurring his speech and was unsteady on his feet, along with other indicators of alcohol impairment, and he was placed under arrest for suspected DUI.

Blake then asked officers where he was and what happened, and when they told him he had crashed into a parked vehicle, he “did not believe” them.

He then told police that he last remembered being at the Hampton Inn and telling a friend that he was too intoxicated to drive, but he did not remember being in a crash. A small amount of marijuana was also allegedly found on the suspect during a search prior to being transported to jail.

Daimon Raishawn Blake, 21, of St. George, booking photo taken in Washington County, Utah, Sept. 19, 2020 | Photo courtesy of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, St. George News

An intoxilyzer test taken at the police department later revealed the suspect had a blood alcohol level of .124, more than double the legal limit in Utah. And a criminal history check revealed a prior drug arrest in Arizona in 2018 along with a $10,000 felony warrant out of the 5th District Court for robbery and aggravated assault.

That case was filed in September 2018 after officers responded to Dixie Regional Medical Center to meet with a man who reported  he “was jumped and assaulted” by Blake, who had come to his home with another man to hang out.

The man explained to officers that shortly after Blake and the man arrived at his home, Blake assaulted him. During the attack, the suspect struck the man in the head, causing a wound that later required seven staples to close. He also suffered a concussion from the attack, that statement said.

The man also reported that his cell phone, a Samsung 8 valued at approximately $800, had been taken from his shirt pocket during the altercation.

When officers arrived at the suspect’s residence, they were told he was no longer living there after a previous incident at the home.

Charges were filed by the Washington County Attorney’s Office and a warrant was issued for Blake’s arrest. But when sheriff’s deputies attempted to serve the warrant, they were unable to locate the suspect. The warrant remained outstanding until Saturday’s DUI arrest.

Blake was transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility where he was booked for suspected DUI and remains in custody on the felony warrant. Bail has been set at $14,320.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2020, all rights reserved.

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