or redistributed. But they point out the majority of them were either involved in risky behavior or killed by someone they knew. The motion filed by Walters new public defender, Julia Metzger, cited MacDonalds comments in hearings over the summer, including remarks about the public defender agency neglecting clients and accusing its attorneys of complete abandonment and total disregard of professional responsibilities., Metzger said MacDonald launched into a 17-minute diatribe at a July 18 hearing, during which he predicted the public defender agency might continue to delay the Mountain Village homicide trial until 2020. Brian Steven Smith is arraigned Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2019 on a charge of first-degree murder at the Anchorage Jail courtroom. Zaz Hollander is a veteran journalist based in the Mat-Su and is currently an ADN local news editor and reporter. Throughout 2016, Ritchie murdered upwards of five individuals in and around Anchorage, Alaska, most of whom were in parks or along bike paths. Born in Montana but raised in Alaska, Duke married, raised three children and worked jobs including as a teacher's aide. She said she was not a police officer in the village at the time of the killing. An Alaska resident found a stray SD card lying on the street in late September and discovered gruesome content inside: images and video of a woman appearing to be assaulted and murdered. "They are engaging in this behavior where maybe a mature person would say, 'I'd never do that,' but to the people involved this is real stuff to them disrespect. Anchorage police think the human remains belong to the woman seen on the memory card, and the medical examiner is working to confirm the connection and the cause of death. Thats going to escalate things tremendously because when were talking about misuse of substances, that inhibition is gone. "I'd say a great number of our citizens don't engage in any activity that's considered dangerous.". She disappeared without a trace. A 19-year-old from Anchorage, Alaska, was allegedly killed by her best friend and several other teen accomplices after they were promised millions of dollars for video evidence of the killing by a man who had catfished them. State lawmakers this year held the public defenders base budget effectively flat, though they included some $1.3 million, or a roughly 5 percent boost, in separate criminal justice legislation that was expected to generate more prosecutions. It appeared that Smith recorded them himself, according to the affidavit. Contact her at zhollander@adn.com. "Same exactly happens to homicide cases. A corrections officer told the court Doubek was on suicide protocols and unable to participate. The three cases police still considerunsolved are the deaths of Marcus Cosby Jr., 24, Elijah Zeller, 18, and Ian Bobich, 29. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! Smith was taken into custody on an arrest warrant for first-degree murder Tuesday afternoon at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, police said in an online release announcing the arrest Wednesday. Eklutna Annie is still unidentified, despite her face being reconstructed in both 3-D and 2-D.[4][23] Several missing women are believed to have also been murdered by Hansen. He was returning to Anchorage, where he lives, Thim said. An Alaskan murder mystery has been solved thanks to a SD card found laying in the street. "That's our plan to create a better police presence," McKinnon said. Resources: If you are facing threatened or actual domestic violence, please discreetly call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or Abused Womens Aid in Crisis in Anchorage at 907-272-0100. People were shot to death at a gas station, in a beloved park in the heart of the city, on a scenic beach where people go to look at the mountains. Police detectivesdon't attribute 2016's increase in homicides to any one cause. The womans body was found last week along the Seward Highway south of the city. Brian Steven Smith is shown being arraigned on a charge of first-degree murder at the Anchorage Jail courtroom Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2019, in Anchorage, Alaska. The victim has. More officers on the streets as with arecently addeddowntown foot patrol,members of which made an arrest in Moren's murder onChristmas Eve make streets safer. All rights reserved. "One of the little girls from that room came running out, calling for help, that her parents had been in a fight," one passenger told CBS News. CALIFORNIA MAN KIDNAPPED GIRL, 17, WHO WORKED WITH PALS TO NAB HIM IN THEIR OWN UNOFFICIAL OPERATION: COPS, There are 39 images and 12 videos on the card, according to a charging document filed by the Alaska Department of Law. Anchorage police identified thesecond victim as Veronica Abouchuk. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. The SD card, reportedly discovered lying in the street in an Anchorage neighborhood, was labeled homicide at midtown Marriott and contained graphic, time-stamped images and video recordings of a man beating and choking a naked woman, according to charging documents. At the scene, troopers found the door handle to Gardners bedroom door had been broken off, with damage marks matching the blade of a broken maul found nearby. About three weeks before Hoffman was killed, Brehmer and Schilmiller began discussing a plan to rape and murder someone in Alaska, according to court documents. (The motion argued that the judge misunderstood the limits on public defenders, who do not choose which charges are filed.). Her family was not contacted and her items were removed from her cabin. A 22-year-old Alaska woman pleaded guilty to murdering her 19-year-old "best friend" in 2019 after a man who was allegedly catfishing her offered her $9 million to kill someone. Armando Velador Padilla, 46, was taken into custody after the. APD asked morning commuters to avoid the area. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. The woman attempted to fight back, the affidavit said. Anchorage police investigate a fatal shooting at the Holiday Gas Station located on Abbott Road on Wednesday evening, May 25, 2016. He warned Metzger against scurrying around in district court, spending time on lesser felony cases instead of the homicide case, according to her motion. The year's final tally surpasses even the 29 deathsthat occurred in 1995, at the time attributed by officials to gang and drug activity. McIntosh was arrested, but Brehmer denied any involvement in the death. And so somebody who might have been using emotional abuse and threats and that sort of thing may escalate into more physical violence, Pearson said. Anchorage police identified the second victim as Veronica Abouchuk. James Dale Ritchie was a senior at East High School in 1994. Two days later, both Brehmer and McIntosh were interviewed. An ongoing Daily News and ProPublica investigation has found that one in three Alaska communities has no local law enforcement of any kind. According to court documents, Denali Brehmer, 18, confessed to killing Cynthia Hoffman on June 2 at the . Passengers describe learning woman died aboard Alaska cruise ship Alaska woman catfished by Indiana man pleads guilty to murder Officials said there was no indication Hoffman was sexually assaulted. He always committed his murders at night, often around midnight or a short time after. Authorities who reviewed the SD cards contents said they remembered Smith from another investigation and found he was registered in early September to a room at a local hotel which had the same carpet pattern as the one in the video. The FBI is investigating the death because it occurred in US waters. [7] He further recollected: "I picked her up downtown and told her I was going to take her to my home". Detectives saythey have a "good understanding" of what happened and who was involved in each of those cases. The memory card, which was labeled homicide at midtown Marriott, was given to police by the woman who found it, charging documents obtained by NBC affiliate KTUU in Anchorage showed. Jorge Rea-Villa, a handsome tattoo artist who went to a Fourth of July barbecue and ended up dead. Doubek and Gardner shared a home in a Wasilla neighborhood off of Snowshoe Lane. Copyright 2021 KTUU. Such delays typically benefit defendants and make it harder for prosecutors to secure convictions, said Alaska Deputy Attorney General John Skidmore. Schilmiller admitted to federal agents and Indiana State Police his role in the plot, saying he chose Hoffman as the victim and he told Brehmer to kill her, according to the court documents. Mike Dunleavy named Steiners replacement Tuesday: Samantha Cherot of Anchorage, who has worked both as a public defender and a private criminal defense and family attorney. Days later, on Oct. 2, police officers found human remains on the side of a highway. The killings happened in nearly every corner of Anchorage: from an Eagle River apartment complex toa normally quietsouth-sidesubdivision. Alaska's arduous Iditarod kicks off with ceremonial start | KRDO We still dont know who she is and we dont know much about her," said Thim. In at least two cases, a person believed to be breaking into a home was killed in what prosecutors determinedto be self-defense, and no charges were filed.The deaths ofLoren Douglas, 30, andAllen Raymond, 19, are still considered homicides by APD. has been charged with first- and second-degree murder, and was taken to Anchorage Jail. A Wasilla woman was shot four times at home Sunday night and her husband is charged with her murder, according to Alaska State Troopers. "Clearance" means police have either made an arrest, prosecutors have declined to file charges due to self-defense or some other reason, or the suspect died. Her eldest daughter Chloe was killed with her. All rights reserved. Federal Jury Convicts Anchorage Man on Murder and Drug Charges MacDonald, who was appointed by then-Gov. And they say despite the number of killings, suspects are at large in very few of the cases. Troopers arrived hours later and interviewed Walters, who admitted to beating Queenie, his 22-year-old girlfriend, with his fists and a broom handle. Market data provided by Factset. The same year, Ritchie was inducted into Phi Theta Kappa, an honor society for two-year colleges, and graduated from Blue Mountain Community College with an associate degree in science, according to his diploma. Marcy keeps running over the questions in her mind: Why is this happening in Anchorage? The district attorney's office also decided not to pursue criminal charges in the shooting death ofAaron Syvinski, 30, which was found to be in self-defense. The images showed a naked woman being beaten on the floor of a hotel room, according to the affidavit. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. (Loren Holmes / Alaska Dispatch News). Smith appeared in court Wednesday, where a judge said he'd be appointed a public defender. Smiths wife of five years, Stephanie Bissland, told KTUU on Oct. 10 that Smith was a good husband, and she did not believe the allegations against him. In some villages, city and tribal leaders say they have no choice but to hire convicted criminals as cops. / 61.1254; -149.5234. Police solved an Alaskan murder with a memory card found along road. He does not look like the young man he portrayed himself to look like, he is not a millionaire and he lives in Indiana, court documents say. Overwhelmingly, people were killed with guns: Gunfire was involved in all but four of the year's homicides. APDsays when Moren left the Gaslight Lounge later that night,he was followedby Roy Schauer, 46. April 23, 2021. The show Very Scary People profiled Robert Hansen in "The Butcher Baker". All rights reserved. Federal authorities allege Brehmer produced sexually explicit videos involving a minor and sent them to Schilmiller. Anchorage Police investigate the scene where human remains we found at mile 108 of the Seward Highway near Rainbow on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2019. ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) Alaska teens hoping to cash in on a $9 million offer from a Midwest millionaire brutally killed a developmentally disabled woman on a popular trail outside Anchorage, shooting her in the back of the head and dumping her body in a river, authorities allege. According to the affidavit, the couple had separate bedrooms. Detectives recognized Brian Steven Smith from the graphic videos because Smith is involved in a separate ongoing investigation, said Anchorage Police Department spokesman MJ Thim. He was unable to "remember whether she was a prostitute or [a] dancer", although he did state he believed she was from Kodiak, Alaska. Mystery over woman's murder on Alaska cruise ship - BBC News The year'shomicides include at least seven domestic violence killings, where the victim is believed to have beenslain by an intimate partner or someone in their immediate family. With the SD card, one of the first questions that detectives had to answer was, Was this staged, or did this really happen? "[13], According to Hansen, he then drove in the direction of Eklutna Lake, with his vehicle eventually becoming stuck on a desolate road as he veered in the direction of a "muddy swamp". Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. The need for nine more lawyers was based on a 45-year-old standard set by the American Bar Association that public defenders annual caseloads should not exceed 150 felonies. Murder of Eklutna Annie - Wikipedia All but one of the victims in those cases were female. Other images showed the woman covered in a white sheet, being moved through a parking lot to a truck. Thursday evening Live Doppler 13 forecast - Feb. 9, 2023. Her eldest daughter Chloe was killed with her. In September, the death of a man in the middle of a busy intersectionshut down anelementary school and a middle schoolwhile police investigated the killing. Veronica Abouchuck, left, and Kathleen Henry. For all the good the internet can do, it can be a very dark place, Bryan Schroder, the U.S. attorney in Alaska, said at a news conference Tuesday. Alaska teens charged in 'murder for millions' slaying | AP News Officers arrested Brian Steven Smith, 48, Tuesday afternoon, an Anchorage Police Department statement said. Troopers: Wasilla woman killed, husband charged with her murder, 2023 Iditarod pre-race coverage and Ceremonial Start, Melissa Fry has the forecast for the Iditarod restart in Willow, Animal rights group PETA continues targeting Iditarod sponsors. CLICK TO VISIT THE ALL-NEW FOXBUSINESS.COM. Man accused of killing woman, recording it is charged in 2nd Alaska murder ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Clayton Andrew Charlie, who pleaded guilty in 2019 to second-degree murder in the stabbing death of a groundskeeper at the Alaska Zoo, has been sentenced to 55 years in prison. He also told officials Brehmer communicated with him throughout the murder, and sent Snapchat photographs and videos of Hoffman while bound and then after the murder. [5][3], This unidentified decedent became known as Eklutna Annie due to the location in which her body was discovered. Of the 34 victims, 14 were under the age of 25. Authorities were expected to announce charges on the case on Thursday. For many, it was the year the city's violence hit home,even if they didn't personally know any of the victims. Doubek did not attend his scheduled arraignment Thursday. A man accused of killing a woman and recording it on an SD card later found in the street has been indicted in the murder of a second woman in Alaska, authorities announced Thursday. Digital evidence and statements show Brehmer was communicating with and sending videos and/or photographs of the events surrounding the incident to Schilmiller at his directive through the duration of the event, documents say. But a bail memorandum filed in the case . The next year,that number nearly doubled, to 25. In a lot of ways I think it is generational," McKinnon said. Igou pleaded guilty on November 5, 2020 to the September 10, 2017 murder of Aurora Paint Company co-owner Gregory Gill. 1 language. Kristy Manzanares had been travelling with a large group, including her children, according to witnesses. Information from: Anchorage Daily News, http://www.adn.com, Timothy Hoffman, right, father of slain teenager Cynthia Hoffman receives support from Edie Grunwald, left, who's son David Grunwald was murdered in Nov. 2016, as they entered a Superior courtroom for the arraignment of Cynthia's murder suspects in the Nesbett Courthouse on Tuesday, June 18, 2019 in Anchorage, Alaska. The Alaska Public Defender Agencys longtime director, Quinlan Steiner, announced his resignation in April. (Scott Jensen / Alaska Dispatch News). The memory card was labeled "homicide at midtown Marriott" and contained 39 images and 12 videos of an assault and murder. Ritchie grew up in Anchorage and was a standout athlete at East High School in the mid-1990s before involvement in drugs led to a felony record that derailed his life. Couple in Alaska cruise ship murder seemed like "perfect American Man accused of killing 23-year-old daughter in Anchorage charged with He also allegedly told authorities that he and Brehmer discussed killing another person, but the plan was abandoned, and he admitted to blackmailing Brehmer into raping people. Some people have speculated gangs are to blame for the bloodshed. APD officer Arn Salao was wounded and the suspect, James Dale Ritchie, was killed in the early-morning shootout. But its workload is growing more quickly just between the 2017 and 2018 fiscal years, it saw a 16 percent increase in felony cases statewide, according to data the agency has presented to the Legislature. Alaskas public defenders have argued for the past two years that rising caseloads and tight budgets are straining their ability to fulfill their constitutional obligation to represent their clients. Human remains found along Seward Highway near Rainbow trailhead. It did not include those deaths. Contact her at mtheriault@adn.com. McIntosh, who is being tried as an adult in the case, was the gunman, prosecutors say. The organization had previously released a digital reconstruction, and a clay bust of Eklutna Annie had also been created in the past. In September 2020, a revised facial reconstruction of the victim was released by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. And he blamed the dysfunction not on managers but on spending plans and policy decisions made by Alaska governors and lawmakers over the years, and continuing to this day. TODAY - Anna Kaplan 18h. ANCHORAGE, Alaska A woman pleaded guilty to murder after an Indiana man allegedly offered her $9 million to "rape and murder someone in Alaska." According to the Alaska Department of Law, 22-year-old Denali Brehmer admitting to killing 19-year-old Cynthia Hoffman on June 29, 2019, near Thunderbird Falls in Chugiak, Alaska. Witnesses say that the incident was described by crew members as "a domestic disturbance". Fiesers account supports a complaint filed by prosecutors charging Doubek with the murder of his wife, 54-year-old Marjorie Gardner. [5][3][10], An autopsy of Eklutna Annie's body revealed she was petite in stature,[11] and most likely white, although she may have had a degree of Native American heritage. Born in Montana but raised in Alaska, Duke married, raised three children and worked jobs including as a teachers aide. MacDonalds order and decision are part of the ongoing effort to hold a criminal trial in Fairbanks for Walters, who was 34 when troopers arrested him Oct. 5, 2017, in Mountain Village on charges of murder, assault and evidence tampering. Around 2010, he left Alaska and spent time in Las Vegas before moving to Virginia, where his parents now live. ThatFriday, she dropped him off for an evening out downtown. When troopers arrived, they found Doubek lying just inside the front door.

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