Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake’s estranged son made the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s most-wanted list this week after allegedly shooting two La Vergne police officers. The manhunt for the convicted rapist ended Tuesday night with a “muffled gunshot.”
Blaze News previously reported that La Vergne Police officers were investigating a report of a possible stolen vehicle when they encountered 38-year-old John C. Drake Jr. outside a Dollar General. The LVPD indicated that after a brief struggle, Drake pulled a handgun and shot officers Ashley Boleyjack and Gregory Kern, then fled the scene.
The officers were both taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center and have since been released.
Following the shooting, the LVPD advised residents to shelter in place, and the TBI put out a statewide Blue Alert, noting that Drake was “armed and extremely dangerous.”
The shooting was not the only reason to suspect that Drake posed a threat to the public. He had an extensive criminal record, having been hit with nearly 60 criminal charges in Davidson County since 2005. He had been convicted of numerous crimes, including aggravated assault, aggravated burglary, rape, multiple sex offender registration violations, and felony strangulation.
Chief Drake stated Saturday, “Despite my efforts and guidance in the early and teenage years, my son, John Drake Jr., now 38 years old, resorted to years of criminal activity and is a convicted felon. … He now needs to be found and held accountable for his actions today.”
The days-long manhunt culminated in a hot pursuit Tuesday evening.
The Metro Nashville Police Department indicated that John C. Drake stole a 2013 gold Chrysler 200 sedan at gunpoint around 6 p.m. on Tuesday. He had initially approached a man outside a duplex in the 100 block of Antioch Pike, asking for a ride. When the man told the rapist he didn’t drive, Drake glimpsed a neighbor sitting in her sedan.
According to police, Drake opened the door of the Chrysler and asked the 23-year-old female occupant for a ride. When she declined, claiming she was running low on gas, Drake brandished his pistol and ordered her out of the car. He commandeered the vehicle, then drove toward Nolensville Pike.
After an MNPD investigator spotted the car on Thompson Place at Patricia Drive, ground units with MNPD air support swooped in to apprehend the suspect.
The street chase terminated at 8:01 p.m. when Drake smashed into a parked vehicle on Villa Place. With ground units hot on his tail and an MNPD chopper overhead, Drake made a run for it. He bolted through multiple yards, then attempted to hide in the backyard shed of a home in the 1400 block of 15th Avenue South.
With nowhere left to run and police forming a perimeter around the property, Drake apparently put a gun to his head.
The TBI noted that responding officers “heard a muffled gunshot from an outbuilding and subsequently found Drake deceased from what appears to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.”
Unlike La Vergne Police Officers Ashley Boleyjack and Gregory Kern, Drake didn’t survive the shot.
“It was my prayer that no harm would come to him or anyone else. I am heartbroken and saddened by the outcome,” Chief John Drake said in a statement. “I appreciate the condolences and kind words of support as my family and I privately mourn our loss.”
The MNPD chief added, “I am grateful to the members of law enforcement, including many officers from this department, who worked diligently since Saturday to locate my son and bring him into custody.”
TBI agents will investigate the rapist’s death and perform a full autopsy at the request of 20th Judicial District Attorney General Glenn Funk.
LVPD Chief Christopher Moews issued a statement Tuesday, saying, “The La Vergne community and our heroic officers can rest easy tonight knowing that the manhunt for John Drake, Jr. is over. We want to thank all of the officers who were involved in tonight’s pursuit for their steadfastness and dedication to seeing this case through to the end.”
Moews added, “Our prayers are with Chief Drake and his family.”
The LVPD chief further indicated that both of the officers who had been shot are now at home recovering from their injuries. He stressed that the assistance the La Verge Fire Department provided to the downed officers in the aftermath of the shooting was lifesaving.
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