Jay J. Armes, the ironically armless private investigator who offered his "world-renowned" services to Logan McQueary, the father of missing baby Gabriel Johnson, seems to be getting shoved off the investigation by McQueary's lawyer -- if he was ever an actual part of the investigation to begin with.
Last night, New Times received a fax from McQueary's lawyer, Tim Maloney, saying Armes was not authorized to speak on McQueary's behalf and that it is time for him to "allow authorities to continue their work."
From the time Armes announced he was "lending" his services to McQueary, the whole thing seemed a little odd -- it seemed more like the motives of someone interested in headlines than finding the baby.
Armes, a former wanna-be actor, had no apparent business in the case other than it's an
unsolved crime that's receiving a lot of media coverage. What better way for an aging private investigator, with an apparently large ego (the guy has his own action figures, as you can see in the image to the right) to get a little ink, right?
According to McQueary's attorney, Armes seems to be more of nuisance than a world-class investigator.
"Mr. Armes has refused to return my clients property and continues to interfere with an ongoing police investigation," Maloney says.
While McQueary appreciates whatever help Armes has given him, Maloney says, he asks that Armes take any further information to the San Antonio Police Department.
Over the last 22 days, Armes claims he has received over 186,000 tips about the baby's whereabouts, which has led his team of "investigators" to Mexico, only to find themselves the targets of an extortion attempt.
To receive 186,000 tips, Armes would have had to get 352 tips an hour -- every hour -- for 22 straight days. Call us crazy, but that just doesn't seem possible.
We called Armes to get his side of the story, but for the second time in as many days, he has declined our request.
