A man accused of deliberately setting fire to a Mahia property that resulted in a huge emergency response, including police, fire trucks, and ambulances, can now be named.
Kelvin Blake, 23, a roofer, had been living at the Kaiwaitau Rd property with his father and grandfather, when they reported the late-night fire on Sunday November 26 last year. It was the same property where another man Dylan Blake, who was 42, died suddenly in unexplained circumstances about midday on July 6 last year.
Police say Dylan’s death was “technically still under investigation but will be forwarded to the Coroner shortly”.
A police and fire service investigation of the blaze at the Kaiwaitau Rd property resulted in Kelvin Blake being charged on December 14 last year, with two counts of using fire to deliberately damage property — a cabin and garage — and intentionally using fire to damage a curtain at the property, knowing it was likely to endanger life. He is yet to enter pleas.
A Justice of the Peace who first dealt with the case in the Hastings District Court last month remanded Blake into custody. Interim name suppression was granted but lapsed with his appearance in Gisborne District Court yesterday. Blake beamed in via AV-link from Hawke’s Bay Regional Prison.
