MONROE COUNTY, IN – A 28-year-old Indiana man was arrested earlier in April on murder and arson charges after being erroneously released from a hospital after allegedly setting fire to a home this past January which claimed the lives of three victims, including the suspect’s elderly grandmother.
On January 18th, Monroe County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched alongside a firefighting crew in response to a 911 call that came in at approximately 2:30 a.m. regarding a house fire off the 3800 block of East Anderson Road where victims were actively trapped inside.
Authorities say by the time law enforcement arrived on the scene, an 18-year-old woman had already managed to escape with severe burns, with a second woman, later identified as 53-year-old Paula Anderson, escaping thereafter with severe burns as well. When fire crews entered the burning home, they discovered 74-year-old Mary Blake and 33-year-old Kristine Rowan deceased.
Anderson, who is Rowan’s mother, succumbed to her sustained injuries weeks later while being treated at an area hospital. Anderson’s daughter suffered from cerebral palsy and was bedridden at the time of the incident, according to reports.
Within an hour of the January 18th arson incident, law enforcement located and apprehended 28-year-old Braydon Blake, the grandson of the elderly woman killed in the house fire, who was found in a wooded area on the property suffering from severe burns. Due to the suspect’s apparent injuries, he was transported to Eskenazi Hospital, where deputies stood guard over him for about a month before the resourced deputies could no longer be afforded for the detail.
Hospital staff reportedly agreed to inform the sheriff’s office when they intended to release Blake, however, the suspect was reportedly discharged from the hospital on April 1st without said communication being afforded to law enforcement, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.
The sheriff’s office claimed to have only learned about Blake’s discharge “independently” on April 9th, spawning an immediate manhunt that landed in the suspect’s apprehension on April 10th in Avon with the assistance of Indiana State Police and U.S. Marshals.
Blake is currently being held without bond at the Monroe County Jail on charges of murder and arson.
On January 18th, Monroe County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched alongside a firefighting crew in response to a 911 call that came in at approximately 2:30 a.m. regarding a house fire off the 3800 block of East Anderson Road where victims were actively trapped inside.
Authorities say by the time law enforcement arrived on the scene, an 18-year-old woman had already managed to escape with severe burns, with a second woman, later identified as 53-year-old Paula Anderson, escaping thereafter with severe burns as well. When fire crews entered the burning home, they discovered 74-year-old Mary Blake and 33-year-old Kristine Rowan deceased.
Anderson, who is Rowan’s mother, succumbed to her sustained injuries weeks later while being treated at an area hospital. Anderson’s daughter suffered from cerebral palsy and was bedridden at the time of the incident, according to reports.
Within an hour of the January 18th arson incident, law enforcement located and apprehended 28-year-old Braydon Blake, the grandson of the elderly woman killed in the house fire, who was found in a wooded area on the property suffering from severe burns. Due to the suspect’s apparent injuries, he was transported to Eskenazi Hospital, where deputies stood guard over him for about a month before the resourced deputies could no longer be afforded for the detail.
Hospital staff reportedly agreed to inform the sheriff’s office when they intended to release Blake, however, the suspect was reportedly discharged from the hospital on April 1st without said communication being afforded to law enforcement, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.
The sheriff’s office claimed to have only learned about Blake’s discharge “independently” on April 9th, spawning an immediate manhunt that landed in the suspect’s apprehension on April 10th in Avon with the assistance of Indiana State Police and U.S. Marshals.
Blake is currently being held without bond at the Monroe County Jail on charges of murder and arson.
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