Washington authorities have arrested a man for allegedly dressing up like a mailman and then attacking a couple in their own home.
Ian Alexander Blair was arrested on February 20 in the Phinney Ridge section of Seattle.
According to police, Blair, 31, donned a U.S. Postal Service carrier’s uniform and rang the doorbell of an unidentified couple. A man answered, and Blair handed him what police have described as an “extortion letter.”
“Police learned… the suspect stood in the doorway with a piece of mail” and “told the victim to open it in front of him,” according to a press release. “The victim thought that it was strange but opened the mail.”
Blair’s letter demanded cryptocurrency in exchange for information he claimed would quash a civil lawsuit the man had been embroiled in.
“My price for this is ten bitcoins: five paid up front, and five more paid once I deliver the information,” read the letter, according to police. “It also turns out I am in possession of some information that would be of interest to the other side, regarding you and your activities. If you do not take this offer with[in] one week, I will make an offer to the other side — and I’m sure he’ll jump at the chance to put you in trouble with the law.”
He then allegedly pushed past the man, and made his way inside the residence, where he started attacking the couple.
The attack happened on February 20, shortly before 2:16 p.m., when police first started fielding calls for assistance.
It was unclear who called to report the assault in progress.
“Officers arrived and witnesses flagged them down,” reads a statement from Seattle Police. “They entered the residence and found [a] 52-year-old and the 31-year-old suspect struggling. The victim’s 50-year-old wife was standing over them in distress.”
Cops stepped in to separate the man from Blair, who was taken into custody and charged with burglary, assault, and extortion over the alleged attack, according to investigators.
Police asked the suspect if he was employed by the U.S. Postal Service, and he refused to speak. He was asked again, and eventually said, “Lawyer,” police said.
Beneath the mail carrier uniform, Blair was wearing a Tyvek-style suit, police said. The suit is a disposable garment typically donned to protect the wearer from hazardous material.
Police said they looked through the suspect’s bag and found several potentially incriminating items, including black Gorilla tape, two rolls of heavy-duty black plastic bags, tasers, large zip ties, a tourniquet, a lint roller, an electronic signal blocking pouch, a black beanie, a prepaid burner phone, a face mask, dark sunglasses, and a box of plastic gloves.
Police have not speculated on what Blair’s motive was, or what he was planning to do to the couple.
It was also unclear what claims were made in the lawsuit against the male victim.
Seattle Police did not respond to Luxury Handbag Shopping’s requests for comment on Tuesday, March 3.
Blair is being held on a $1 million bond. It was not immediately clear when he was scheduled to appear in court.
