‘Armed and dangerous’ man was hiding in Waterville attic when arrested, police say

WATERVILLE — A Massachusetts man who had eluded police for more than five weeks was arrested early Monday after he was found hiding in the attic of a Waterville house, according to police.

Diego Martinez Submitted photo

Diego Martinez, 31, was arrested at 224 County Road, according to Shannon Moss, spokesperson for the Maine Department of Public Safety.

Multiple law enforcement agencies had been searching for Martinez since officers attempted to arrest him in November in Sabattus. Martinez had been considered armed and dangerous.

At about 1 a.m. Monday, law enforcement agencies converged on the home on County Road to execute a search warrant after learning Martinez might be hiding there, according to officials.

The Maine State Police Tactical and Crisis Negotiation teams attempted for several hours to make contact with Martinez at the house, but were unsuccessful. In that time, 10 people cooperated and left the residence, including Robert Salley, 40, of Waterville, who was arrested on a warrant, police said.

The tactical team eventually entered the house, finding Martinez hiding in the attic with Ryan Loucks, 34, of Waterville and Talline Blakeslee, 41, of Winslow. Loucks and Blakeslee were arrested with Martinez.

Following the arrest, Loucks was charged with refusing to submit to arrest and violating condition of release, and Blakeslee with refusing to submit to arrest, a probation violation and an outstanding warrant.

In addition to his four warrants, Martinez was charged with refusing to submit to arrest and creating a police standoff.

The search for Martinez began after police attempted to arrest him Nov. 11 at a Sabattus house. As police were surrounding the residence, Martinez drove a vehicle through the garage door and led officers on a chase through Lewiston and several nearby communities before crashing the automobile in Auburn, according to police.

Martinez continued to flee, and was spotted in multiple vehicles in a number of counties across Maine, often leading police on further chases.

Martinez had been sought on a variety of warrants stemming from drug trafficking, kidnapping and illegally possessing firearms, Moss said.

The FBI Safe Streets Task Force, Waterville Police Department, Maine Warden Service, U.S. Border Patrol Air Unit and Kennebec County Jail Transport Division assisted state police in apprehending Martinez and arresting Salley, Loucks and Blakeslee.

Editor’s note: This report was updated Thursday, Dec. 22, to correct that authorities attempted to arrest Martinez at a home in Sabattus, not Lewiston.