NR 19-28 Sheriff’s Office Searching for Sex Offender Who Resisted Arrested

The Brevard County Sheriff’s Office Sexual Offender Registration and Tracking Unit is attempting to locate 36-year-old, Steve Wesley Blankenship of Cocoa, who resisted arrest earlier today and fled from agents in the area of Satellite Boulevard. Blankenship is a sexual offender who was convicted of a sexual offense in 2005 in the state of West Virginia. He is facing charges of Violation of a non-contact Order, Resisting Arrest with Violence, Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer, and Tampering with an Electronic Monitoring Device. 

The incident began shortly after 9:00 a.m. this morning when an agent form the SORT Unit went to a residence on Desert Sands Avenue for an address verification on Blankenship. Blankenship was not permitted at the residence due to a Domestic Violence arrest from June 2, 2019, where he was issued a non-contact order. Information had also been received that Blankenship may have removed his Electronic Monitoring Device he was required to wear from a previous arrest for Failing to Register. The agent observed Blankenship at the residence, without the monitoring device and in violation of the court order. As the agent attempted to arrest Blankenship, he resisted arrest and was able to break free, fleeing into the dense woods in the area of the residence. A search of the area was conducted without success in locating Blankenship. Agents are still monitoring the area in an attempt to take the Blankenship into custody. 

Blankenship is 5’11’’ tall, weighs 195 pounds and was last seen wearing blue jeans and no shirt. He has dark brown hair and a dark brown beard and mustache. Anyone who comes in contact with Blankenship is asked not to approach him, but to call 911 or the Sheriff’s Office Communication Center at 321-633-7162.

For additional information concerning this News Release, please call PIO Tod Goodyear of the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office at 321-501-7594.