Market data provided by Factset. Prosecutors: Anchorage cold case murder started with gunfire, ended in According to the Violence Policy Center, Alaska ranked number one in murder of women by men in incidents where there were one victim and one offender from 2014 through 2018. On Christmas Day, the people who loved Lucas Moren gathered in the alley behind the Gaslight. After human remains were found along a highway just south of Anchorage two days after the memory card was found, police were able to start putting pieces together. According to a press release from the Alaska Department of Law, Charlie was sentenced to 75 years . A 48-year-old Anchorage man was charged with murder after someone found a digital card containing dozens of videos and photos that authorities say show him beating and killing a woman in a. 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. 2022 Anchorage Daily News. The show Very Scary People profiled Robert Hansen in "The Butcher Baker". Michelle Theriault Boots is a reporter who covers news and features about life in Alaska, and has been focusing on corrections and psychiatric care issues in the state. Such delays typically benefit defendants and make it harder for prosecutors to secure convictions, said Alaska Deputy Attorney General John Skidmore. The case marks the second killing in less than six months involving a video. In the Lower 48, gangs are more organized and act as outside-the-law businesses, pushing drugs and weapons in defined territories. It was first broadcast on May 9th, 2021. In some villages, city and tribal leaders say they have no choice but to hire convicted criminals as cops. It did not include those deaths. Human remains found along Seward Highway near Rainbow trailhead. Mystery over woman's murder on Alaska cruise ship - BBC News In a lot of ways I think it is generational," McKinnon said. As Merritt approachedAndrew Robertson-Goughnor, police said, Robertson-Goughnor shot him. Authorities who have reviewed the videos and photos said they remembered Smith from another investigationand found he was registered in early September to a room at a local hotel that has carpet that matches the one seen in the footage. Alaska Teen Killed Friend After Man Online Allegedly Offered $9M Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com. Another factor no one could have predicted: James Dale Ritchie, who could prove to bethe most prolific killer in AnchoragesinceJoshua Wade, though APD is not ready to call him that. The killings happened in nearly every corner of Anchorage: from an Eagle River apartment complex toa normally quietsouth-sidesubdivision. Doubek slept downstairs. Born in Montana but raised in Alaska, Duke married, raised three children and worked jobs including as a teachers aide. Passengers told CBS News that a "murder mystery" theme dinner had been taking place when the incident occurred, and several passengers first confused the crime for a hoax. 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. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. "Same exactly happens to homicide cases. I don't believe it.". 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. 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. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, She deserves just as much as a search for her people as any other victim, as any other survivor. Together, the homicides pose a question for Anchorage: What made 2016 so deadly? When troopers arrived, they found Doubek lying just inside the front door. Gardner was shot four times, according to the charging documents. LOUISIANA MAN ARRESTED IN 1989 MURDER CASE: POLICE. "Because of his knowledge other students identify him as a potential source of aid but may have been intimidated by his high level of self confidence," the letter said. Contact her at zhollander@adn.com. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Fiesers account supports a complaint filed by prosecutors charging Doubek with the murder of his wife, 54-year-old Marjorie Gardner. According to court documents and evidence presented . She disappeared without a trace. An Alaskan murder mystery has been solved thanks to a SD card found laying in the street. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. He told Anchorage District Court Judge Brian Clark that he had about $2,000 in total saved. Brian Steven Smith is arraigned Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2019 on a charge of first-degree murder at the Anchorage Jail courtroom. This is a truly horrific case that is not the norm for our community, Anchorage Police Chief Justin Doll said at a news conference, the Anchorage Daily News reported . All rights reserved. The . Smith is originally from South Africa. The case remains open, and numerous efforts have been made to determine the identity of the decedent, including several forensic facial reconstructions of how she may have appeared in life. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Igou pleaded guilty on November 5, 2020 to the September 10, 2017 murder of Aurora Paint Company co-owner Gregory Gill. Gov. Her fiance was killed. Published: Jan. 27, 2022 at 4:27 PM PST. Veronica Abouchuck, left, and Kathleen Henry. [17], To date, Roxane Easland, Karen Evan, Megan Emerick, and Teresa Davis have been ruled out as being Eklutna Annie. Incident happened aboard the Emerald Princess cruise ship (file picture), Harry: I always felt different to rest of family, Inside the enclave surrounded by pro-Russia forces, US-made cheese can be called 'gruyere' - court, Why Alex Murdaugh was spared the death penalty, Why Trudeau is facing calls for a public inquiry, Canadian grandma helps police snag phone scammer. Hansen specifically stated she was his first murder victim. The record in this case should reflect that, as a result of the policy and budget choices made by the legislative and executive branches the people of Alaska must tolerate long delays in the prosecution of the type of crimes charged in this case crimes against women, crimes fueled by substance abuse, crimes against law enforcement officers, crimes against rural Alaskans, the judge wrote. 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. "That's what's been fascinating.". Alaska murder mystery twist: Memory card found along road shows man Nearly a week prior, on Sept. 30, someone called Anchorage Policeclaiming to have "an SD card containing a video of a homicide," according to a press release from authorities. Then, on Wednesday, Oct. 2, the womans body was found along Turnagain Arm, near the Rainbow trailhead. (Bill Roth / ADN). Alaska copscharged an Anchorage man with murderTuesday after shocking videos found on a mysterious memory card allegedly capturedthe suspectassaulting and killing a woman whose remains were recently discoverednear a highway. 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. Alaska's arduous Iditarod kicks off with ceremonial start | KRDO The trial has been delayed at least 15 times at the request of the defense, according to MacDonalds order. [3][4], Eklutna Annie was murdered by serial killer Robert Hansen, most likely in 1979. While the agencys inflation-adjusted spending has doubled in the past 30 years, its felony caseload has tripled, it says. 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. Anchorage police identified thesecond victim as Veronica Abouchuk. Around 2010, he left Alaska and spent time in Las Vegas before moving to Virginia, where his parents now live. At one point, the agencys seven-attorney Bethel office was down to three, he said. He then attempted to placate her, before pulling a gun, saying: "You do exactly as I say and you won't get hurt. "We are working on the Ship Creek case still and the Valley of the Moon Park," said Markiewicz. It's not that clear-cut, said McKinnon. The judges order describes a disparity in the next phase of the criminal justice system the one that begins after a suspect is arrested and the clock starts ticking toward a timely resolution for defendant and victim. 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. Here, "it's more groups of people who know each other and engage in high-risk behavior together," he said. In the years since, he'd helped her live with lasting injuries. The SD card also contained images of the womans body being removed from a hotel room and transported in a black truck, according to charging documents. It took 26 days after Merrian's disappearance for her to be reported as a missing person and for the search for her to start. [8] He died in prison in August 2014. Ritchie is considered the main suspect in those killings, said Markiewicz. Alaska Public Media 2022. Thim declined to say anything about the other investigation, or whether Smith is a suspect in other crimes. Anchorage man sentenced to 55 years in prison for murder of Alaska Zoo Anchorage police say 8-month-old baby found safe; father arrested on All rights reserved. Smith had registered a room at the TownePlace Suites by Marriott the night the video was taken, according to the affidavit. Police are careful not to blame victims of violent crimes. Hoffman, 19, died from a gunshot wound to the. More than a few cases seem to trace back to a personal slight or insult that escalated into violence, said Lt. John McKinnon, head of APD's homicide unit. Reporter Jeff Parrott contributed to this story. Two days later, both Brehmer and McIntosh were interviewed. Contact her at mtheriault@adn.com. "Loose lips sink ships," Markiewicz said. Published: Jul. Anchorage police say they've arrested a man for the murder of a woman whose body had been dumped a week ago on the Seward Highway south of Anchorage. Anchorage's deadly year: With 34 homicide victims, violence hits home Smith appeared in court Wednesday, where a judge said he'd be appointed a public defender. According to Hansen, he had first attempted to placate Eklutna Annie as he restrained her, falsely claiming he did not intend to harm her, although she responded: "You are! An update released by Anchorage Police four months later stated they had taken a then 21-year-old named Orion Lind into custody but no charges were brought over Brandon's murder. Police have not identified the victim, who is said to have been killed during the first week of September. Brehmer ultimately admitted to being solicited by Schilmiller to commit the murder and that the murder was planned once she realized she had been catfished by Schilmiller, the documents say. Her eldest daughter Chloe was killed with her. Kyle Hopkins and Nat Herz, Anchorage Daily News and Alaska Public Media. A 48-year-old Anchorage man was charged with murder after someone found a digital card containing dozens of videos and photos that authorities say show him beating and killing a woman in a Midtown hotel room. Other witnesses described seeing a bloody man threatening to jump off the ship. Police continued to investigate and interviewed her two days later after Snapchat video appeared, in which she appeared to confess, the documents say. Princess Cruises said 39-year-old Kristy Manzanares of Utah. During an arraignment at Anchorage Jail Court Wednesday, a judge set Smiths bail at $750,0000 cash and appointed a public defender to represent him. At one June hearing, shortly before she resigned, the public defender noted she was working a double case load. shut down anelementary school and a middle school, don't attribute 2016's increase in homicides to any one cause, mother accused of suffocating her infant daughter, killed in a downtown shootout with police, Here are the most-read Alaska Dispatch News stories of 2016. (Bill Roth/Anchorage Daily News via AP), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Last year, Steiner, who was then the agencys director, warned that his attorneys were at their limit and would have to start refusing to handle new cases without a $1 million boost to their $26 million budget. But the same weapon found on Ritchie at the time of his death an uncommon, vintage Colt Python .357 was used to kill four other people in a two-month span: Brianna Foisy, 20, and Jason Netter Sr., 41, on the Ship Creek Trail July 3, and Bryant "Brie" De Husson, 25, and Kevin Turner, 34, at Valley of the Moon Park on Aug. 28. ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Seven Cold Case Task Force offices across the nation, dedicated to solving cold cases involving missing and murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives, are opening in the next few weeks, one expected to open in Anchorage. Officials allege they destroyed some of Hoffmans clothing, purse and cellphone, and Brehmer texted Hoffmans family to let them know they dropped her off at Polar Bear Park in Anchorage. The department is also trying to directly ask the public for help more often. Police said the body was found near milepost 108 of Seward Highway on Oct. 2. "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. Warming water may be to blame. Nationally, the homicide clearance rate hovers around 64 percent, according to statistics from the FBI. 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. Or are people just angrier?" Catfisher Convinced Alaska Teens to Murder a Developmentally Disabled Legal Statement. "James recognized the potential issue and has appropriate (sic) adjusted his behavior to make himself more inviting for others to seek help. Thursday evening Live Doppler 13 forecast - Feb. 9, 2023. Thats going to escalate things tremendously because when were talking about misuse of substances, that inhibition is gone. July 27, 2017 / 10:16 AM / CBS News A suspect is in custody Thursday morning after a woman was found dead on a cruise ship in Alaska. The millionaires only demand for the payout was either photos or video of the slaying, according to court documents laying out first-degree murder and other charges against six people in the June 2 death of 19-year-old Cynthia Hoffman. Alaska woman pleads guilty to killing 'best friend' after man catfished Months before the alleged hit . 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. Little is known about Smith, the man charged. 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. In arguments included with MacDonalds order, public defenders described an agency at its breaking point, struggling to retain experienced attorneys and unable to compete for recruits against cities with a lower cost of living and comparable pay. The race is on: What to know about the 2023 Iditarod, No injuries in downtown Anchorage commercial building collapse. When a composite sketch of the man suspected in the death of TreyveonThompson was released, more than 190 people called in tips, McKinnon said. she said. The year's final tally surpasses even the 29 deathsthat occurred in 1995, at the time attributed by officials to gang and drug activity. A Snapchat video showed two of the teens accused of killing 19-year-old Cynthia Hoffman near the Thunderbird Falls trailhead in June apparently discussing the crime. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. [9] A box of Salem matches were found in a pocket of her jacket, indicating she may have been a smoker. ", "Alaska State Troopers: Unidentified Body", "Serial Killer Robert Hansen Dies in Anchorage", "Serial Killer's Victim Exhumed In Alaska: Who Is 'Horseshoe Harriet'? His hair was long. After Mr. Mackay and the pilot's sister, Muriel . She wore several articles of clothing, including a brown leather hip-length jacket, a light-colored knitted sleeveless shirt (possibly white, beige, or light gray in color), blue jeans, and red, knee-high, high-heeled, zip-up boots. At 41, he was a bachelor. Pilot Project sites will implement initial response plans for tribal communities' response to new missing and murdered persons cases Anchorage, Alaska - United States Attorney Bryan Schroder announced Alaska's Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Pilot Project (Pilot Project) today. ", Autumn Smith. A woman in Alaska was walking her dog when a moose charged her from behind and kicked her in the head, according to shocking video captured by a bystander. Smith is charged with first-degree murder. A memorial for James Lucas Moren in an alley behind the Gaslight Bar on Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2016. He moved back to Alaska in the spring of 2016. Judges appoint public defenders for defendants who cant afford to hire their own lawyers. Last week, 23-year-old Darla Velador of Anchorage was stabbed to death. Officials said there was no indication Hoffman was sexually assaulted. Anchorage police say theyve arrested a man for the murder of a woman whose body had been dumped a week ago on the Seward Highway south of Anchorage. (Erik Hill / Alaska Dispatch News). The REAL Deaths Behind The Show (Episode Guide) - Emma Cruises 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. The majority of victims were killed by someone they knew. Legal Statement. "I'd say a great number of our citizens don't engage in any activity that's considered dangerous.". 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. In an unusual order, an Alaska judge has declared a crisis in the states courts, saying that turnover among public defenders is delaying criminal trials and denying justice for victims and defendants alike. "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. "No More Silence": Her Kidnapping, Sexual Assault and Murder Stunned a McKinnon said police are still trying to piece together what Ritchie did on a daily basis during the months he is believed to have been back in Anchorage. Many questions remain unanswered Wednesday, including the identity of the woman. Kristy Manzanares had been travelling with a large group, including her children, according to witnesses. Market data provided by Factset. An SD card found on an Alaska street showed a woman's murder - NBC News But he added that those specific failures were symptoms of broader dysfunction, like public defender and prosecutor jobs going unfilled because of obstacles to recruitment and retention, as well as travel restrictions. Investigators believe the remains along the highway belonged to the woman killed in the videos and they believe Smith killed her in early Septemberand recorded the photos and videos himself. If you are considering suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or Stop Suicide Alaska at 1-877-266-HELP. "It depends on what we're looking at as far as danger," said McKinnon, speaking generally about citizen safety and homicides in 2016. On Wednesday,. "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. As of Oct. 9, police said they were still working with the state medical examiner to determine her identity and contact her next of kin. (Anchorage, AK) - On April 22, 2021, thirty-one year-old Randall Igou was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Eric Aarseth for Murder in the First Degree. The Emerald Princess, operated by Princess Cruises, had departed from Seattle on Sunday for a week-long trip. In response, he chased after her, grabbed her by the hair and tripped her to the ground. Indiana man enters not guilty pleas in Alaska murder plot In September 2020, a revised facial reconstruction of the victim was released by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. After the death, the ship was diverted to the city of Juneau, in Alaska, and passengers were forced by investigators to remain on board for more than eight hours. The memory card found along road shows an Anchorage man assaulting and killing woman. A handwritten note laid on a nearby bench with the words Shes havin an affair proof is in the phone. Overwhelmingly, people were killed with guns: Gunfire was involved in all but four of the year's homicides. New documents from Ritchie'stime at community collegein Virginiapresent a portrait of a striving engineering student whose work was so good that a professor wrote in a 2013 letter of recommendation that he gradedRitchie's exams first and used them as the test's key. 2022 Anchorage Daily News. Its just really incredibly disheartening, Pearson said. Brian Smith . All rights reserved. [14], In 1984, Robert Hansen admitted that he was responsible for the victim's death. In 2017, the year Queenie was killed, the rate of women killed by men in Alaska was three times the national average and the highest in the United States, according to the Violence Policy Center. "She championed any child. Market data provided by Factset. There wasSelena Mullenax, a young mother studying for her GEDfound shotin a public park on a winter morning. In a separate federal investigation rising from the investigation, Schilmiller and Brehmer were indicted Tuesday on federal child pornography charges, including production and coercion and enticement of a minor. Delay is always the friend of the defense because it makes it harder for prosecutors to put on their case.. Eklutna Annie is the name given to an unidentified murder victim whose body was discovered in a wooded area, one mile south of South Eklutna Lake Road in Eklutna, Anchorage, Alaska, in July 1980. Other images showed the woman covered in a white sheet, being moved through a parking lot to a truck. She was aged between 16 and 25 at the time of her death, and her body was discovered several months after her murder. Lucas Moren himself had cleaned up the bloody scene of the machete attack on his mother. Some people have speculated gangs are to blame for the bloodshed. There were no immediate details aboutthe earlierinvestigation involving Smith. An employee at the city of Mountain Village said the city currently has no police officer and that no officials were available to comment on the case. Hoffman was allegedly best friends with Brehmer, and she was chosen by the group as the victim, the documents say. Police solved an Alaskan murder with a memory card found along road. 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. The FBI is investigating the death because it occurred in US waters. MacDonalds ruling addresses some of the most urgent problems facing Alaskas criminal justice system, where policymakers and the public have increasingly turned their focus in recent years. She covers breaking news, the Mat-Su region, aviation and general assignments. So far, nothing has been found. The organization had previously released a digital reconstruction, and a clay bust of Eklutna Annie had also been created in the past. Photos apparently show the woman underneath a blanketon a hotel luggage cart near a truck and in the truck bed, per the document. Smith originally pleaded not guilty to charges of murder, sexual assault and tampering in the death of his first victim, 30-year-old Kathleen Henry, before admitting to the crime.