A 22-year-old man was arrested after allegedly stabbing another man in Bethel over the weekend, police say.

Resty Balantac Jr. is accused of stabbing a 23-year-old Bethel man early Saturday, according to a statement from the Bethel Police Department. The male victim was taken to the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation and later flown to Anchorage. He was listed in critical condition at the Alaska Native Medical Center.

Balantac — who is originally from Hawaii but is living in Bethel — was arrested on charges of first- and fourth-degree assault.

Bethel police and medics responded to the 900 block Ridgecrest Drive around 03:15 a.m. Saturday for the stabbing. When authorities arrived, the 23-year-old stabbing victim was found on the ground, bleeding from his abdomen area, police said.

Bethel police say they are continuing to investigate the case. The department asks anyone with information to call 543-3781 and ask to speak with Sgt. Amy Davis.

A trip to Las Vegas, new clothes and maximum ATM withdrawals for a month — today a former Anchorage School District teacher pleaded guilty to stealing thousands from an elderly woman’s bank account.

Susanna Difranco admitted to wire fraud and access device fraud to illegally gain access to the woman’s bank account, court documents say. She is accused of swindling more than $70,000.

The fraud case was brought forward after the victim noticed the money was missing and she asked her bank where it went.

As part of a plea deal, Difranco agreed to pay the woman back.

Anchorage police say they are worried there could be additional victims of a 34-year-old Chugiak teacher accused of sexually abusing a student.

Oly Sugay — who had been teaching at Birchwood Christian School in Chugiak — was arrested and charged with five counts of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor, according to a statement from Anchorage Police Department spokesperson Renee Oistad.

The Oct. 6 arrest comes after school staff contacted APD about “one of their teachers having an inappropriate relationship with a student,” Oistad wrote.

APD said Birchwood Christian staff learned in late September that Sugay had sent “numerous texts to a female student,” Oistad said. The girl’s grandparents discovered an “excessive amount of text messages” on their cell phone bill, which they pay for, according to court records.

When her grandparents called the number she was texting, Sugay identified himself. Police said the student’s age is being withheld for privacy purposes.

“Further investigation revealed that Sugay had been sexually abusing her over the 2015 summer break,” the police spokesperson said. “The abuse ended just prior to school beginning but text messages continued.”

Court records show at least seven sexual encounters occurred between Sugay and the girl beginning in “late June, early July.” Most of the incidents occurred in Sugay’s camper, which was parked in his yard.

The girl told investigators she “knew the relationship was wrong because [Sugay] was married,” court records show.

Sugay was remanded at the Anchorage jail. His bail was set at $7,500 cash-corporate with a third-party stipulation.

Sugay had been teaching an IT class at the school for about a year, said Oistad, adding APD is concerned there could be more victims. Police ask people with additional information to contact Detective Davies at 907-786-8809.

A 22-year-old Anchorage woman was arrested and charged after she allegedly tried to smuggle alcohol to a dry village in Western Alaska.

Nicole Parduhn is charged with alcohol importation and possessing alcohol for sale without a license or permit — both of which are class C felonies, according to an online dispatch from Alaska State Troopers.

On Sunday, investigators in Bethel looked into a report that Parduhn was smuggling alcohol into Pilot Station, which is a dry village. Authorities found she had 35 750-millimeter bottles of distilled spirits in her checked luggage, troopers wrote.

Parduhn was arrested and remanded to the Yukon Kuskokwim Correctional Center. Court records indicate she was arraigned Monday morning.

Roughly 630 people live in the Yukon River community of Pilot Station, according to state data.

A Michigan man was sentenced in federal court Monday for creating fake charities in order to defraud the public of donation money.

Chief United States District Judge Ralph Beistline sentenced 46-year-old Alan Bartlett to 13 years imprisonment for multiple counts of mail, bank and wire fraud and identity theft.

Between December of 2009 and December of 2012, Bartlett used two businesses — United States Disabled Veterans, LLC and United States Handicapped-Disadvantaged Services, LLC — as a front for his scheme. The two businesses claimed to provide jobs for disabled veterans and other handicapped individuals, as well as assist them financially. Instead, the money was used to pay for Bartlett’s personal bills and loans.

Bartlett was also accused of using the personal information of donors to change their addresses so he would receive their financial information. In one case, Bartlett attempted to steal the pension benefits of an elderly man with Alzheimer’s.

Kodzoff Acres Mobile Home Park on Wednesday, Oct. 21.

Updated on Wednesday, Oct 21 at 3:50 p.m.

ANCHORAGE – A Juneau man has been arrested for murder after 30-year-old Brandon Christopher Cook was found dead in a home Tuesday evening.

Christopher D. Strawn was arrested on a first-degree murder charge and taken to the Lemon Creek Correctional Center Wednesday, police said.

Tuesday around 10:30 p.m., the Juneau Police Department received a call about a disturbance at a home on the 2800 block of Mendenhall Loop Road.

“The caller stated a male shot another male while at the residence,” a release from JPD says. The caller was reportedly in the home when the shooting occurred.

About three minutes after the call, police arrived at the home — located in the Kodzoff Acres Mobile Home Park — and found a “severely injured male on the floor,” the statement says. The victim was later identified as Cook.

Capital City Fire and Rescue declared Cook, a Juneau resident, dead.

Police believe Cook and Strawn used to work together.

“They were acquaintances,” said JPD Chief Bryce Johnson. “They had been co-workers, previous co-workers.”

It’s not clear who lived in the home where the shooting took place, the chief said.

“It was not in the suspect’s home and I’m not sure if the victim lived there or not,” Johnson said. “So, it was a home that was having some work done to it and the victim was helping with that work.”

Strawn fled the scene after the shooting. He was detained around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Glacier View Trailer Park.

Strawn was identified as a suspect not long after officers arrived on scene, JPD said in an update Wednesday afternoon. He was placed under surveillance overnight while detectives investigated.

Although warrants were obtained early Wednesday, police said they delayed going after Strawn immediately over safety concerns about children walking to school and increased traffic.

At one point early Wednesday, police tried to track down someone else they mistakenly thought was Strawn.

Around 7 a.m., ”a person walked out of the area where JPD believed the suspect was located. This person vaguely matched the description of the suspect,” a JPD release says.

The person boarded a Capital Transit bus that was headed to the Nugget Mall area. Several buses were searched and JPD realized the person was not Strawn.

Before detaining Strawn, officers contacted people in nearby homes and gave them instructions on how to safely leave the area if they chose to evacuate. A Capital Transit bus was parked at a nearby bus stop so residents could stay away from the area.

JPD says an investigation is ongoing. The Tuesday death marks Juneau’s first murder investigation in years, the city’s police chief says.

–This is a developing story. 

A former assistant attorney general in Alaska has been convicted and sentenced for official misconduct stemming from legal advice she provided in 2010.

In April 2010, the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development became concerned about dealings between the Alaska Labor Relations Agency — a state agency — and the Alaska State Employees Association (ASEA) — a union.

Erin Pohland — who in 2010 was the assistant attorney general responsible for advising the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development — was asked to give the Alaska Labor Relations Agency advice over concerns that ASEA-filed documents were believed to have been forged, according to a statement from the Alaska Department of Law.

Pohland advised the state agency but did not reveal her relationship with Skye McRoberts. McRoberts was an organizer in ASEA’s effort to have an election to unionize hundreds of University of Alaska employees. McRoberts was eventually prosecuted for second-degree forgery for submitting falsified documents to help make the election happen. McRoberts paid more than $34,000 in restitution to the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development and UA.

An investigation found months of back-and-forth text messages between Pohland and McRoberts about ASEA’s efforts to organize union employees. They also talked about Pohland’s efforts to help the union while advising the Alaska Labor Relations Agency at the same time, the DOL statement says.

ASEA was successful in pushing forward a union election for more than 2,500 UA employees. The election, however, did not happen because a former union employee reported the forgeries to authorities in August 2010.

Judge Jo-Ann Chung sentenced Pohland to a $5,000 fine and a suspended jail sentence. Although she faced up to a year in jail, Chung said jail time was not warranted even though Pohland was convicted of a “serious charge,” the DOL statement says. Pohland was also placed on informal probation for three years.

“Judge Chung determined that a suspended imposition of sentence was not warranted, which leaves Pohland with a permanent record for her conviction,” the DOL says. “Judge Chung explained that this case was about ‘public trust’ of the Alaska Attorney General’s Office.”

Andy Nitchman/KTVA

Andy Nitchman/KTVA

Andy Nitchman/KTVA

Andy Nitchman/KTVA

Andy Nitchman/KTVA

A man is undergoing treatment at a local hospital after being stabbed multiple times Thursday evening.

The Anchorage Police Department was called to an apartment building on the 400 block of Bragaw Street at 7:29 p.m., according to a statement from APD. Police found the male victim, who is listed in serious condition.

Police said a suspect was taken into custody at the scene without incident.

APD is continuing their investigation into the incident.

This is a developing story, please check back for updates.

This story originates from KYUK Public Media and was published with permission

BETHEL — Bethel resident Resty Balantac Jr. is facing felony and misdemeanor assault charges after a night of partying turned violent earlier this month.

The 23 year old is charged with first degree assault, Bethel Police said in early October, Balantac stabbed another male in the abdomen during a fight. Police also charged him with fourth degree assault for striking his girlfriend.

According to a police affidavit filed in court, the Bethel Police Department received a call on Oct. 10, around 3 in the morning saying a man had assaulted his girlfriend and was trying to pick fights with other people at a party near the 900 block of Ridgecrest in Bethel.

Witnesses said Balantac and his girlfriend had been arguing during the party. She eventually went back home, and Balantac followed her. Balantac said there was another argument at their home and he slapped her. People at the party said they saw “a huge Samoan guy,” Balantac, hitting his girlfriend in the face.

One female witness said the onlookers started yelling at Balantac after seeing that happen through the window. The girlfriend left the house and was taken in by other people who were at the party. Balantac came out of his home to follow her.

Witnesses said Balantac then tried to enter the house but several people blocked him from doing so.

In his police statement, Balantac said he was trying to make his way past them when a woman kicked him in the mouth. He said he fell back down the stairs, where he got kicked again. Then, a fight started between Balantac and a man. Witnesses then said Balantac left the scene and went back to his house after the fight broke up.

Police received several calls moments later that a man had been stabbed and that Balantac was attempting to stab more people.

In a police statement, Balantac said he was angry about the fight when he got home and grabbed a kitchen knife-which he pocketed along with another pocketknife he said he usually carries. He went outside to confront the men who he said were calling him names.

During the confrontation, Balantac stabbed a 24-year-old man and threw the knife into a nearby pond. Another male told police he saw his friend fall to the ground and ran to help. He said he and Balantac began fighting until Balantac pulled out another knife and he backed away. Balantac then went home. Police and EMT’s from the local fire department arrived on scene.

Police said they saw one man lying on the ground, bleeding from the abdomen surrounded by people trying to assist him. Medics assessed and transported the victim to the Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corporation. He was later medivaced to Anchorage where he was listed in critical condition. As of Thursday, Oct. 22, Providence Alaska Medical Center said he was released but would not comment any further.

While investigating, police said they were told Balantac had stabbed the man. Police contacted Balantac at his home. After conducting an interview, police charged Banaltac with assault in the first degree and assault in the fourth degree. He was remanded to the Yukon Kuskokwim Correctional Center. He was arraigned earlier this month. He is due back in court Dec. 10 for a pretrial hearing.

A judge will determine whether aggravating factors exist ahead of sentencing for a man arrested as he exited a vandalized Kodiak church.

The Kodiak Daily Mirror reports (http://bit.ly/1KxaHh8) 22-year-old Arkimedes Garcia pleaded guilty Tuesday to a single criminal mischief charge related to the damage at Holy Resurrection Russian Orthodox Cathedral.

Charges including burglary were dropped.

Garcia was arrested June 10 as he exited the church, where doors, windows and religious items were damaged, broken or disturbed.

A trial next week will determine whether aggravating factors exist. Garcia’s sentencing has yet to be scheduled.

___

Information from: Kodiak (Alaska) Daily Mirror, http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com

(Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

One person is dead and an Alaska State Trooper was taken to the hospital after an officer-involved shooting Saturday night on the Sterling Highway.

Just before 11:30 p.m., the trooper initiated a traffic stop near Mile 82 of the highway, but the driver failed to stop, according to an online AST dispatch.

This resulted in a short pursuit, after which the trooper was able to make contact with the driver, “who engaged the trooper in a physical altercation,” AST says.

“As a result of the altercation the trooper drew and fired his service weapon,” the dispatch states. “The driver succumbed to his injury and was pronounced deceased on scene.”

The trooper, whose name will be released within 72 hours, per department policy, was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment of minor injuries. The name of the deceased is being withheld until next of kin have been notified.

Troopers say the Alaska Bureau of Investigation is conducting an investigation into the incident.

Police affidavits reveal the events leading up to an attack on 17-year-old Conor Lally and 19-year-old Caia Delavergne at a downtown Anchorage residence Friday night.

Christian Beier, 21, was arraigned in court Sunday for allegedly shooting the pair. He was arrested just before 1 p.m. on Saturday, after an hours-long manhunt in the Mountain View area.

Court records show the shooting was first reported around 7:11 p.m. by a man who found Delavergne walking down N Street with a towel wrapped around her head, bleeding.

When police responded to the scene, she pointed out a white house on the corner of N Street and Sixth Avenue where the shooting took place. She said someone, later identified as Beier, had shown up with a gun, but she didn’t think she’d been shot, just hit in the head with the gun. She was then transported to a nearby hospital for what police determined to be a gunshot wound to the head.

Before police could get inside the home, the front door opened and Lally came out and collapsed on the front porch, “covered in blood,” court records stated. No one else was inside, but several shell casings were found in the living room and in an upstairs bedroom. Officers also noted “several areas of blood” in the home.

Lally was also transported to the hospital, where he underwent surgery for his injuries, according to police.

Police spoke again with Delavergne, who said Beier had been at the house all day before Lally asked him to leave. She stated she was in a dating relationship with Lally, but “lately [Beier] had been hitting on her.”

Delavergne said she was upstairs with Lally when Beier attempted to get into the residence. Lally went downstairs and she “heard some banging and then two shots,” according to a police affidavit.

“The next thing she knew [Beier] was up stairs and looking at her,” the affidavit said.

She told police she jumped out of an upstairs window to get away. Police found a window screen on the ground under a second floor window.

Hours later, Beier allegedly posted about the incident, saying Lally “got what he deserved.”

Former Anchorage police detective Glen Klinkhart said the post wouldn’t necessarily be considered a confession in court.

“In order for it to become evidence, it needs to get its way into court,” he said. “In order to get into court, there is still some hoops that have to be kind of jumped through in order to show the veracity of it, show where did it come from, who actually posted it, the time, the date, those sort of things. And that actually, for something like this is, going to take a lot of work.”

He said most cases don’t solely rely on what he called “CSI evidence,” but consider things like witness testimony. He noted that in some cases, the suspect just wants to be heard and will either tell police what happened or make a similar public statement like Beier’s.

“It’s just that in this day and age, it seems like the social media is where young people gravitate to,” he explained, noting many don’t consider how far-reaching their posts can be. “It’s become the place, it’s become the thing, rather than a video entry or in your diary. That seems to be the place people don’t even think about what it is, what it means, and the ramifications of sending that stuff out there.”

Beier was charged with two counts of first-degree attempted murder, two counts first-degree assault, and a single count each of first-degree burglary and fourth-degree misconduct involving a weapon. The judge convening over Beier’s pre-indictment hearing entered pleas of “not guilty” for Beier, who did not have a lawyer. Beier was scheduled to appear in court again on Monday morning.

If convicted, Beier faces a maximum prison sentence of 99 years.

KTVA 11′s Sierra Starks, Lauren Maxwell and Shannon Kemp contributed to this report.

Courtesy APD

Update on Thursday, Oct. 29

Anchorage police say Thomas Goodwin has been arrested.

In an update sent out just before 2 p.m., police said Goodwin was being taken to the Anchorage Police Department for questioning and will then be brought to the Anchorage jail.

Earlier story

ANCHORAGE – Anchorage police are trying to track down a 35-year-old man who is wanted on charges of sexually abusing minors and is now dodging authorities.

Earlier this month, the Anchorage Police Department obtained an arrest warrant for Thomas Goodwin for two counts of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor — felonies.

“Goodwin is aware of the warrants and is actively avoiding capture,” said APD spokesperson Renee Oistad in a statement.

Oistad added police are concerned there could be more victims.

The arrest warrant stems from events early last year when Goodwin moved in with a female friend in the Anchorage area. The woman had five children, three of whom were girls whose ages ranged from 5 to 11 years old. About three months after moving in, Goodwin moved out, Oistad said.

When the girls were visiting their father at his home in June, “they disclosed the sexual abuse they endured by Goodwin while he lived with them for those few months in 2014.”

APD was then contacted, Oistad said. The charges relate to two of the girls.

“The evidence we currently have supports those charges,” Oistad said in an email. “The investigation is ongoing – if evidence supports more charges, those will be added.”

Police ask people with more information regarding Goodwin’s alleged crimes to call Detective Leonard Torres at 907-786-8573. Those with information on the 35-year-old’s whereabouts are asked to call APD dispatch at 907-786-8900. Anonymous tips can also be submitted via Crime Stoppers by calling 561-STOP or by going online to AnchorageCrimeStoppers.com.

A man who traded methamphetamine to addicts for stolen mail and checks was sentenced in court Wednesday.

Chief U.S. District Court Judge Ralph Beistline sentenced 45-year-old Jonathan Ortiz Escalante to 14 years in prison for 16 counts of fraud, identity theft, drug distribution and possessing a firearm as a felon, according to a statement from the District Attorney’s office.

Escalante, also known as “Superman,” pleaded guilty in March as part of a plea deal.

Court documents show Escalante agreed to give meth to addicts and homeless people in Anchorage in exchange for stolen mail that held checks or credit cards and other banking information. He would also have some of the individuals involved in his scheme cash checks and purchase items using the stolen cards. He managed to steal more than $40,000.

Along with his prison sentence, he will be required to pay the recommended restitution and special assessment fee, totaling more than $45,000, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Steward.

Escalante was also convicted in Washington and California for similar crimes.

Four co-conspirators Escalante recruited to steal mail and cash checks for him have been convicted and sentenced: Neasha Moore, John Brittain, Ralph Oliver and Denae Sullivan.

KTVA 11′s Kate McPherson contributed to this report.

Three people have been arrested in connection with the May homicide of a 23-year-old man shot to death in a parking lot near the Rock n Rodeo bar in Fairbanks, authorities say.

U.S. Marshals and New Braunfels Police Department detectives arrested 26-year-old Joel Roland Joseph Tuesday in Selma, Texas, on a first-degree murder warrant. Joseph — formerly of Anchorage — relocated to New Braunfels two days after allegedly killing John D. Kavairlook, Jr., according to a statement from the Fairbanks Police Department.

Joseph’s brother — 34-year-old David Gregory Joseph — was arrested in Anchorage and indicted on a first-degree hindering prosecution charge. Police say he was not at Rock n Rodeo the morning of the homicide.

Lastly, 25-year-old Demarius William Hinson was arrested in Orlando, Florida, Wednesday on a $500,000 warrant for first-degree hindering prosecution. Formerly of Anchorage, he fled the country after the homicide and later returned to the U.S., Fairbanks police say.

Police earlier reported that Kavairlook and another male were fighting inside the Old Steese Highway bar when they were escorted outside by security. Things heated up again outside and three other males joined in the fight. At some point, one of the males fired multiple shots at Kavairlook. He died at the scene.

In a statement, Fairbanks spokesperson Amber Courtney said investigators are not disclosing the specific roles of the suspects until everyone implicated in the homicide has been nabbed.

“Additional arrests are expected,” she wrote.

Fairbanks Mayor John Eberhart said investigators have spent more than 3,000 hours working the case. Following the May 17 shooting, authorities released images and video to the public in an attempt to identify the suspects.

Aaron Nathaniel Trejo

Anchorage Police Department

Updated at 3:03 p.m. on Oct. 30, 2015

Anchorage police are looking for a person of interest in Friday morning’s shooting death of 26-year-old Spencer Christian Ballenger.

Ballenger was found in the parking lot of the Eagle River Carrs, shot in the chest. He was declared dead at the scene.

Police have named 26-year-old Aaron Nathaniel Trejo as a person of interest in the case, and are asking for the public’s help in locating him. He is 5-feet-10-inches tall and weighs roughly 250 pounds.

Anyone who has information on his whereabouts is asked to call Anchorage police at 786-8900.

Original Story

A homicide investigation is underway with no suspects in custody after police discovered a dead male in the Eagle River Carrs parking lot overnight, authorities say.

The victim has not been positively identified, the Anchorage Police Department said in a statement early Friday morning.

Just before 2 a.m. Friday, security contacted Anchorage police to report shots fired in the grocery store parking lot. Police responded and found the male dead from an apparent gunshot wound.

APD asks anyone with additional information to contact them. Anonymous tips can be provided via Crime Stoppers by calling 561-STOP or by visiting www.anchoragecrimestoppers.com.

–This is a developing story. Please check back for updates. 

A 33-year-old man was arrested for attempted murder after allegedly ambushing and stabbing another man as the victim was leaving work Thursday evening.

Daniel Cochrane, of Wasilla, was arrested for attempted murder for stabbing the man over a “personal matter,” Alaska State Troopers said in an online dispatch Friday morning.

Shortly after 10 p.m. Thursday, Palmer-based troopers received a report that Cochrane was attacking a man outside a Wasilla school. The victim — who was stabbed multiple times — sustained life-threatening injuries, AST said. His condition was considered “critical” when AST released their dispatch at 4:21 a.m. Friday.

AST tracked down Cochrane in Palmer and detained him. He was booked at a local jail.

“Investigation revealed Daniel was angry at the victim because of a personal matter,” troopers wrote. “Daniel ambushed the victim as the victim was leaving his work.”

An Anchorage man is in custody after leading Alaska State Troopers on a high-speed chase through Big Lake early Thursday morning.

Around 4:15 a.m., troopers tried to pull over the driver of a gold 1998 Chrysler Cirrus for a moving violation. The vehicle initially did not stop, reaching speeds over 100 mph, troopers wrote in an online dispatch.

The Chrysler eventually came to a stop near Mile 2 of the Susitna Parkway. The driver — 39-year-old Jeffrey Brigman – ran from troopers but was later located at a nearby home, the dispatch says.

An investigation revealed he had four outstanding warrants for his arrest:

1. Failure to appear for trial on charges of vehicle theft and driving under the influence.
2. Failure to appear for trial on on two counts of felony controlled substance misconduct and one count of having no insurance.
3. Violating conditions of his release for a previous felony.
4. Violating parole on an original charge of manslaughter.

He was arrested for the outstanding warrants and received additional charges of reckless driving, driving with a revoked license and eluding the police, the release states.

Troopers also arrested the passenger of the vehicle, Rose Walker, 50, of Big Lake, on charges of hindering prosecution because she refused to identify Brigman after he ran from authorities. She was taken to jail and held on $750 bail, while Brigman was held on $46,000 bail.

A 35-year-old man who allegedly stole two cars and led police on a cross-town chase on Friday has been taken into custody.

Anthony Conway’s crime spree began shortly before 9 a.m. on E 41st Street, according to police spokeswoman Renee Oistad. After gaining access to a garage, Conway was confronted by the homeowner. Conway sprayed bear spray at the homeowner and fled.

At 9:31 a.m., police were notified that a vehicle had been stolen through physical force on E 42nd Avenue, a block away from the first incident.

“A woman’s out there, she’s brushing off her car, it’s warming it up…he comes up and whatever he says… she realizes that he means business,” Oistad explained. “She backs up, so he jumps in this car and he takes off with it.”

Police were called later about a similar attack on the 2500 block of Crestwood Street at 12:40 p.m. A 93-year-old woman was cleaning off her blue Buick Roadster when a man approached her and pushed her to the ground.

The description of the suspect given by the woman matched what the other victims told police, later identified as Conway, Oistad said. She said police also found the first vehicle abandoned a few houses away from where he stole the Buick.

Oistad said Conway was finally located thanks to “awesome citizens” who reported seeing the stolen Buick at various locations. Police were able to locate him at 15th Avenue and I Street and followed him to Raspberry Road and C Street. They attempted to stop him by forcing him off the road, but Conway managed to escape.

“We called off the pursuit at that time,” Oistad said. “In the meantime, we’re getting all these calls from people about this erratic driver, and we figure out it’s the same guy.”

She said they found him again on the east side of Anchorage. Police pursued him onto the Glenn Highway, where they were able to force him off the road into the median. Conway then took off on foot across the westbound lanes of the highway and was finally caught in a stand of trees at the Boniface Parkway on-ramp.

Oistad noted that several people called Anchorage police to report damage to their vehicles police believe was caused by Conway while driving the stolen vehicles. No one reported any injuries.

Police are continuing their investigation into the incidents, and will forward charges against Conway to prosecutors.

Police say a man was critically injured after a downtown shooting early Saturday morning.

Just after 3 a.m., the Anchorage Police Department received multiple reports of callers hearing shots fired near W. Third Avenue and E Street.

“Shortly thereafter, police received a report of an adult male arriving at a local hospital with multiple gunshot wounds,” a release from APD says. “The victim remains in the hospital with life-threatening wounds.”

APD discovered the shooting took place in the parking lot off W. Third Avenue between C and E streets.

Detectives and the APD Crime Scene Team were still on scene through the morning hours of Halloween. Police say no suspects have been taken into custody at this time.

Police are encouraging anyone with information on the shooting to call APD at 786-8900 or, to provide an anonymous crime tip, call Anchorage Crime Stoppers at 561–STOP.