U.S. Marshals Arrest Third Suspect in WA Shooting in Carmichael

A man charged in connection with a fatal shooting in Tacoma, Wash., was arrested Monday in Carmichael, the U.S. Marshals Service office in Seattle announced.

Olujimi A. Blakeney was arrested by Marshals Service personnel with the Northern District of California, said Mark Ericks, United States Marshal for the Western District of Washington.

U.S. Marshals were on the scene in front of a residence at Fair Oaks Boulevard and Frontier Way searching for Blakeney, Sgt. Tim Curran, spokesman for the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department confirmed. Sheriff's officers assisted on the call, Curran said.

Blakeney was wanted for the shooting death of Lisa Melancon in Tacoma on July 22.

Following the murder of Melancon, an intense investigation led to the identification of three suspects, Ericks said. Blakeney was the last of three suspects arrested and charged with murder in the case.

Information was developed by the Pacific Northwest Fugitive Apprehension Task Force personnel that Blakeney was in the Carmichael area, Ericks said. Additional information was developed by task force personnel and provided to U.S. Marshals Service personnel in Northern California.

USMS personnel, along with deputies from the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department, found Blakeney and placed him under arrest without incident.

"Once again, the dedicated men and women of the US Marshals Service, state, and local law enforcement agencies prove that working in a partnership with the common goal of improving public safety pays off," Ericks said in a released statement.

The Pacific Northwest Fugitive Apprehension Task Force is a U.S. Marshals-sponsored partnership comprised of investigators from the King County Sheriff's Office, Seattle Police Department, Clark County Sheriff's Office, Vancouver Police Department, Washington State Department of Corrections, the U.S. Social Security Administration's Inspector General, the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service and the U.S. Marshals Service.

The task force concentrates apprehension efforts to remove federal, state and local fugitives from the streets with the objective of disrupting illegal gang, gun and drug activity in the Pacific Northwest and reducing the amount of violence in the region, Ericks said.

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The U.S. Marshals Service has confirmed that a final suspect wanted for the fatal shooting of a Tacoma, Wash., code enforcement officer was arrested today in Carmichael, according to Tacoma news reports.

Olujimi Blakeney, 25, was taken into custody without incident after being located in an apartment, The News Tribune is reporting.

Pierce County prosecutors have already charged Blakeney and two others with first-degree murder and drive-by shooting for the July 22 slaying of 40-year-old Lisa Marie Melancon, according to The News Tribune.

U.S. Marshals were on the scene in front of a residence at Fair Oaks Boulevard and Frontier Way searching for a homicide suspect from the Seattle area, Sgt. Tim Curran, spokesman for the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department confirmed. 

Sheriff's officers assisted on the call, Curran said.

Officials at the U.S. Marshals Service offices in San Francisco and Seattle could not be reached for comment this evening.

Check back with Carmichael Patch for more information as it becomes available.

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Carmichael Patch contributor Adalto Nascimento contributed to this report.