Updated: Friday, Sept. 19 – 3:45 p.m.

The driver of the stolen vehicle who died in Thursday’s crash has been identified by the State Medical Examiner’s Office as 54-year-old James Bain of Anchorage.

Wasilla resident Kerry Niles took to Facebook Thursday to alert friends and family that his home had been broken into, giving a description that seemed to match Bain.

I just got home to my house being robbed! The guy was driving a early to mid 90s short bed stepside, standard cab Chevy or GMC 1500. The guy had a beard and was in his 50s to 60s. He stole the truck last night the troopers said. The burglary was in the area of Fish Hook and seldon. If anyone sees this truck please call me or the troopers right away!!! He stole my son that died. My son was cremated and was in a earn. The their stole all I had left of my son.

In addition to stealing an assortment of household items, Bain also stole an urn containing the ashes of Niles’ deceased son.

The investigation into the incident is ongoing.

Original story:

The driver of a stolen vehicle died in a crash Thursday afternoon after attempting to run from Alaska State Troopers, according to a statement released by AST.

The vehicle, which was previously reported stolen, was spotted at a Wasilla construction site at around 2:40 p.m., the statement went on to say.

Minutes after the stolen vehicle was initially spotted, troopers reported it traveling on Spruce Avenue in the direction of Church Road in Wasilla.

Attempts to contact the driver were unsuccessful and a brief pursuit ended when the driver crashed at the intersection of Church and Spruce, according to the statement.

The driver has not been identified.

The Anchorage Police Department says there’s a growing problem in Anchorage — spas and massage parlors that are really just a front for prostitution.

Thursday, APD raided Rainbow Spa in Anchorage and arrested one woman for prostitution.

Police say there were a number of women not only living in the store, but also offering clients sexual favors for money.

This is the seventh time APD has been to this massage parlor and the second prostitution bust in just two days.

Wednesday, police arrested a woman for prostitution at World Spa — also in Anchorage.

APD says it’s a common theme: Owners bring up women from other states, they get busted and shut down only to reopen a few doors away under a different name.

National Park Service officials say charges are pending in connection with two hunters who illegally shot a moose at Denali National Park and Preserve.

Rangers investigated the shooting after it was reported Sunday evening as taking place in an area where sport hunting is prohibited.

Officials say the two hunters are men from the Matanuska Valley, who said they did not know they were in the park.

Officials say the man had a map, a regulation book and a global positioning system unit.

Sport hunting is allowed only in the Denali National Preserve at the western corners of the park.

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Juneau police are investigating a burglary in which they say more than $40,000 in jewelry was taken from Costco.

Police say they received a report around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday that the store’s burglar alarm had been triggered. Responding officers spoke with someone who reported seeing a shorter white man, with brown hair and possibly a Carhartt-style jacket running off.

Police say they found no signs of forced entry, suggesting someone waited inside until the store closed. A jewelry case was smashed and items including watches, rings and necklaces were missing.

Police are looking for any possible witnesses or anyone in the area with a video surveillance system.

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A woman from Alaska has been sentenced to life in prison after she and her husband say they lured a stranger to his death through a Craigslist ad in Pennsylvania.

Miranda Barbour and her husband Elytte Barbour pleaded guilty to second-degree murder last month. They were sentenced Thursday, according to The Daily Item.

The newlyweds posted an ad offering companionship in November 2013. Troy LaFerrara, 42, answered the ad and police say Miranda Barbour stabbed him more than a dozen times after her husband held a cord around his neck.

The judge sentenced them to life without parole, saying the two must be permanently removed from society. Elytte Barbour apologized, but said he could not explain his actions, the Associated Press reported.

Records show Barbour attended school in Palmer. She claimed to be part of a satanic cult and previously said she had murdered at least 22 people. Authorities said they have not found evidence to back up her serial killer claims.

Courtesy Google Maps

A man is in custody after a fatal hit-and-run collision early Saturday morning.

According to the Anchorage Police Department, 54-year-old Guy Merculief man was struck and killed shortly after 2 a.m. in the area of 1500 E. Fifth Ave.

APD responded to the vehicle-pedestrian collision and learned that Merculief had been walking across Fifth Avenue in front of the Holiday Stationstore when a vehicle struck him. Police found Merculief lying in the roadway. He was pronounced deceased.

The vehicle, described to police as a red Honda Civic, fled the scene before the officers arrived, according to a statement from APD spokesperson Dani Myren.

Officers were able to locate the vehicle in a parking lot on Concrete Street. The suspect was found walking a short distance away.

Police later identified the driver as 22-year-old Pao Yang. Authorities collected a breath sample from Yang and found that he was driving with approximately two times the legal limit for alcohol in his system.

Yang was arrested on charges of manslaughter, operating under the influence and leaving the scene of an accident. He is scheduled to be arraigned Saturday afternoon.

The victim’s next of kin have been notified, APD says.

This is an ongoing story. Updates will be added as they become available.

A 17-year-old girl was transported to the hospital after a shooting at a house party early Sunday morning in the Abbott Loop neighborhood of Anchorage.

At approximately 12:18 a.m., the Anchorage Police Department responded to multiple calls of domestic disturbance. Callers reported hearing gunshots outside a residence near the 6800 block of O’Brien Street.

Police’s initial investigation reports there had been a house party at a single family home on O’Brien Street. According to police, an unknown and uninvited group of individuals arrived and attempted to enter the party. When they were denied entry, one of the individuals produced a handgun and fired multiple shots into the residence.

One of the bullets that entered through the front window of the house struck the 17-year-old girl in the lower back. She was transported to the hospital with what appeared to be non-life-threatening injuries, police say. The girl is currently believed to be in stable condition.

According to witness reports, the suspect that produced the handgun left the area in a red car.

APD says this is an ongoing investigation. Police are encouraging anyone with information on the suspect’s whereabouts to call APD at 786-8900 or to submit an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers at 561-STOP.

This is an ongoing story. Information will be added as it becomes available.

A 42-year-old Douglas man has been charged with a misdemeanor for allegedly shooting a black bear as it rummaged through trash in his yard.

James Houck is set to be arraigned Oct. 2 in Juneau District Court for shooting in an area closed to hunting.

The Juneau Empire says (http://is.gd/CddBor) police began investigating after a homeowner reported a wounded black bear dragging itself through his yard. Police euthanized the partially paralyzed bear.

Alaska Wildlife Troopers said last week that its investigation showed Houck shot the male black bear on Sept. 8 as it was going through his unsecured trash.

Houck is not listed in the phone book and did not respond to messages from the newspaper on Facebook. It’s not clear if he has an attorney.

Douglas Island is open for black bear hunting, but hunters must stay a quarter of a mile from roads.

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Information from: Juneau (Alaska) Empire, http://www.juneauempire.com

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A 20-year-old Fairbanks man who claimed he shot two men because they were pressuring him to play Russian Roulette will serve 13 years for felony assault.

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports (http://is.gd/GzSWCH) Christian Andrew Williams entered into a plea agreement Monday in the 2012 shooting. Sentencing was scheduled for February.

Williams was arrested in the July 2012 shooting. Both victims, Davante R. Woods and Olajahwon R. Quint, survived.

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Information from: Fairbanks (Alaska) Daily News-Miner, http://www.newsminer.com

(Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

A center for the disabled in the Mat-Su Valley that allegedly overcharged the Alaska Medicaid Program by hundreds of thousands of dollars is facing fraud charges.

The Mat-Su Activity and Respite Center, LLC suspended its services in June amid an investigation by state. Monday, the Alaska Department of Law’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit announced the center and it’s owner, 58-year-old Laura Sasseen of Palmer, had been charged with falsifying business records and medical assistance fraud.

“A full review of the agency records revealed that the alterations primarily consisted of increases in recipient service units rendered,” charging documents say.

An audit, conducted by certified public accountant agency Myers and Stauffer, also found time sheets and hours provided had been changed. From the year 2009 alone, the audit determined $37,451.88 in Medicaid payments were connected to documents that had been altered, according to court documents. In all, the total Medicaid overpayment calculation was more than $700,000.

As the center’s sole owner, Sasseen was “the only person to benefit monetarily from falsely inflating billings to Medicaid and altering documents…” charging documents say.

Meanwhile, the state says the company paid to process its Medicaid payments isn’t working up to the expectations of its contract.

The Department of Health and Social Services says Xerox has failed to “timely and accurately” pay providers who serve patients using Medicaid, according to a statement from Gov. Sean Parnell’s office. The DHSS filed an administrative breach of contract, and the state also notified the company it was assessing $46.7 million in liquidated damages against Xerox.

A judge has set a trial date for a Kenai man who is charged with establishing a charity for overseas soldiers and keeping most of the donations for personal use.

The Peninsula Clarion (http://is.gd/56Fc5M) reports Frank Roach is scheduled to begin trial Dec. 15. The trial date was set by Kenai Superior Court Judge Carl Bauman at a status hearing Monday.

Roach was the organizer of the nonprofit Alaska Veterans Outreach Boxes for Heroes. State prosecutors say Roach hired people to solicit donations in front of stores, but that he used much of the money for living expenses.

He is charged with scheming to defraud and eight counts of theft.

Boxes for Heroes had three founding members, but only Roach is charged.

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Information from: (Kenai, Alaska) Peninsula Clarion, http://www.peninsulaclarion.com

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Police say a woman who was killed by a co-worker at a food distribution center in suburban Oklahoma City was beheaded and that witnesses have said the suspect had been trying to convince co-workers to convert to Islam.

Moore Police Sgt. Jeremy Lewis said Friday that 30-year-old Alton Nolen had been terminated from Vaughan Foods in Moore shortly before the incident took place on Thursday afternoon.

Colleen Hufford, 54, was beheaded and another woman, 43-year-old Traci Johnson, was stabbed. Both victims were employees of Vaughan Foods, but according to Lewis, it appeared the women were not targeted and were instead stabbed at random.

Mark Vaughn, an off-duty officer who also serves as chief operating officer of the business, shot Nolen as he was stabbing Johnson. Johnson and Nolen were still hospitalized Friday.

Click here for the full story on CBSnews.com.

A 23-year-old Ketchikan man has been accused of swinging a knife in front of a federal fisheries officer.

The U.S. attorney’s office says Dean Wesley Garcia has pleaded not guilty to a single count of assaulting a federal officer. Online court records don’t list a lawyer for Garcia, who remains jailed until trial.

Federal prosecutors say a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration special agent visited Garcia in response to a report of illegal halibut sales.

The agent noticed a large filet knife on the counter, and he moved it closer to him.

Court documents allege Garcia asked him, “Are you scared?” He’s then accused of grabbing the knife and swinging in the air of front of the agent.

There were no injuries, and authorities say the agent deescalated the situation.

(Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

A Sterling man has been arrested for firing a gun at the driver of a vehicle who fled the scene of an accident.

On Wednesday, Alaska State Troopers arrested 49-year-old Christopher Allen, who admitted to shooting at the driver Sept. 21 on Jim Avenue in Sterling, according to an online dispatch posted Sunday.

A passenger was treated at Central Peninsula Hospital for injuries sustained during the vehicle collision, troopers said. Allen was held without bond at the Wildwood Pretrial Facility on assault, weapons misconduct and reckless endangerment charges.

Photo courtesy the Anchorage Police Department

Authorities are asking the public for help in finding a man charged with stabbing another man Saturday evening in Spenard.

The Anchorage Police Department has issued an arrest warrant for 51-year-old Monte Ferguson Sr. on a second-degree assault charge. He has not been taken into custody as of late Monday morning.

Just after 11 p.m. Saturday, police were called to a home on the 2200 block of Jefferson Avenue following a stabbing report, according to APD spokeswoman Jennifer Castro. Two males had gotten into a verbal fight inside a home when the dispute spilled outside and turned physical.

According to police, one of the males was stabbed and the suspect, later identified as Ferguson, left in a vehicle. The victim was hospitalized and treated for a non-life-threatening stab wound.

Police ask people with information on Ferguson’s whereabouts to contact APD at 786-8900 or call Crime Stoppers at 561-STOP. In addition to the the charge stemming from Saturday’s stabbing, Ferguson has two outstanding felony warrants for drug and weapons charges.

A 42-year-old woman was arrested after a body scan at a hospital revealed she was trying to smuggle heroin and methamphetamine in her body to Kodiak, authorities say.

As part of a long-term investigation, officers with the Western Alaska Alcohol and Narcotics Team detained Tamra M. Jones Saturday at the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport as she boarded a flight bound for Kodiak, according to a statement from Alaska State Troopers.

After obtaining a search warrant, Jones was taken to a local hospital where a scan revealed she had a balloon filled with drugs concealed in a body cavity.

The items, which Jones removed voluntarily, included 24.3 grams of heroin and 8.3 grams of methamphetamine bound for sale in Kodiak, troopers wrote. Authorities estimate the street value of the heroin to be about $24,000 and the meth to be about $2,500 if sold in Kodiak.

Upon discovery of the drugs, Jones was arrested and charged with multiple counts of misconduct involving a controlled substance, troopers said. Bail was set at $25,000 plus supervision by a third-party custodian.

The Kodiak Police Department and the Anchorage Police Department assisted in the case, according to the statement.

Back in April, Kodiak police made the biggest drug bust in the history of the department when they seized an estimated $2.2 million worth of meth and heroin.

A Palmer man is facing 80-plus years in jail after he pleaded guilty to multiple counts of child sexual abuse, Alaska State Troopers say.

On Friday, Robert Cunningham, 47, pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor and one count of possessing child pornography, according to a Monday online dispatch from AST.

In January 2013, authorities received a report that Cunningham had sexually abused a 5-year-old girl and a 6-year-old boy for 10 years, troopers said.

Last April, Cunningham was indicted on 41 counts of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor, five counts of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor and two counts of possessing child pornography, according to the dispatch. A warrant for Cunningham’s arrest was issued and the Palmer man fled the state. Authorities later tracked him down in Oregon and Cunningham was extradited back to Alaska, troopers wrote.

Palmer Superior Court Judge Kari Kristiansen imposed an 88-year sentence, 15 years of probation and lifetime sex offender registration as part of a plea agreement.

Cunningham has yet to be sentenced in federal court for a related child pornography case. In 2001, he was convicted in federal court for possessing child pornography.

Last updated Tuesday, Sept. 30 at 12:45 p.m.

A Monday night shooting has left a man in critical condition, police say.

The gunfire broke out just before 9:30 p.m. near the intersection of East Fourth Avenue and Reeve Boulevard, according to Anchorage Police Department spokeswoman Jennifer Castro. Police received a call from a citizen in the nearby Taco Bell parking lot who said they heard a gunshot in the area.

APD and medics responded to the scene and found a male victim suffering from a gunshot wound to the neck. He was transported to the hospital. As of Tuesday afternoon, he remains in critical condition, Castro said.

The suspects were described as two males in an SUV, police said.

“It was reported to police that one of the males had gotten out of the SUV and approached the male victim who was walking in the area and demanded money from him,” Castro wrote. “The suspect shot the victim and then left in the SUV.”

Police ask anyone with information regarding the shooting to call APD at 786-8900 or submit a crime tip anonymously via Crime Stoppers at 561-STOP or anchoragecrimestoppers.com.

This is an ongoing story. Information will be added as it becomes available.

A Juneau man has pleaded guilty to felony criminal mischief for 2012 fires that caused $26,000 in damage at a city park.

The Juneau Empire (http://bit.ly/1E08U4D) reports 26-year-old Ryan Martin changed his plea Tuesday.

A second man, 26-year-old Dillon West, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor criminal mischief and was sentenced to 80 hours of community service.

A third defendant, 20-year-old Ashley Rae Johnston, was convicted of felony criminal mischief last year.

Prosecutors say the three were recorded on park video surveillance cameras before the June 19, 2012, park fires.

The fires damaged a tractor and material owned by a company replacing artificial turf at a city football field.

Martin, with no prior felony convictions, faces a presumptive prison sentence of zero to two years. The maximum is five years.

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A truck driver has been convicted of failing to report a crash on Interstate 90 in south-central Montana where an 81-year-old Alaska man was killed.

Officials in Sweet Grass County say 45-year-old David Welk was convicted Wednesday. District Judge Katherine Bidegaray ordered a presentence investigation and did not set a sentencing date.

Elgie Bedford of Wasilla, Alaska, died early on Sept. 30, 2013. Investigators believe several vehicles ran over his body before officers discovered it at about 7:30 a.m.

Welk was arrested in Iowa on Jan. 23 after his co-driver reported that the truck hit something in Montana.

Defense attorneys argued investigators couldn’t determine how many time Bedford was struck.

A Washington state woman who drove through the area is charged with leaving the scene and tampering with evidence. Her trial is set for November.

(Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)