Anchorage police and K9 Kenai apprehended a driver who attempted to flee in a stolen vehicle by ramming it into a police vehicle and then a building.
Police said K9 Officer Scott Huston spotted a stolen Subaru Impreza parked and unoccupied at the intersection of Fourth Avenue and Denali Street around 1:20 a.m. Officer Huston kept an eye on the car for about 20 minutes before two people got into the vehicle and attempted to drive away.
Officer Huston, in an effort to prevent them from leaving in the stolen vehicle, pulled up behind the car to block it in, according to a statement from police. The driver of the stolen vehicle proceeded to ram the vehicle into Officer Huston’s vehicle and then into a building.
“The driver then tried to run from the scene, but was apprehended by Officer Huston’s K-9 partner, Kenai,” police said.
Police searched the stolen vehicle and found a handgun on the driver’s side floor. The driver, who was identified as 25-year-old Faofua Afasene, was taken to a local hospital for treatment of minor injuries from the crash.
After he was cleared by hospital staff, police arrested Afasene and charged him with assault, vehicle theft, resisting arrest, misconduct involving a weapon and criminal mischief in this case. Afasene has another case against him involving similar charges, including fleeing the scene of a collision.
He was taken to the Anchorage Correctional Complex and held on a bail of $27,500 with a third-party custodian requirement.
Police estimate the amount of damage to the stolen Subaru and the building Afasene struck was roughly $2,000.
