Last updated at 5:15 p.m. on Monday, May 9
The Anchorage Police Department is looking for two men, including one with connections to several vehicle thefts, who walked away from an Anchorage halfway house together Saturday night.
Tagaloa Tanuvasa, 42, and 37-year-old Filipo Rhode left the halfway house they were assigned to at 10:57 p.m. Police have issued felony arrest warrants for the escapees. The men also have additional charges against them in open cases related to a vehicle theft ring in the Anchorage area.
“Tanuvasa is part of a criminal ring responsible for several vehicle thefts and burglaries,” police said in a statement Monday. APD spokeswoman Renee Oistad said the ring could be described as a “gang-like” group of individuals.
“They are a group of like minded individuals who are performing similar criminal activities,” she said. “Sometimes together, sometimes not.”
Oistad said previous interactions with members of the group have proven dangerous. She said in two instances, police were fired upon by Rhode and Tanuvasa’s associates and others have attempted to escape police at high speeds, posing a danger to other drivers and pedestrians.
Oistad said 685 vehicles have been reported stolen since Jan. 1. She said roughly 80 percent of those had been recovered. Some stolen vehicles have been used to barter for drugs and others used in the pursuit of criminal activities, like burglaries, she said.
Anyone with information on either man’s whereabouts is asked to call APD at 786-8900. An anonymous tip can also be submitted through Anchorage CrimeStoppers online or by calling 561-STOP (7867).
Who qualifies for a halfway house?
That both men were able to simply walk away from the community residential center (CRC), or halfway house, calls into question the security of CRCs; namely, what kind of people are placed there.
Corey Allen Young, a spokesman for the Department of Corrections, said that determination is made on a case-by-case basis, and depends on a number of factors. He said those involved in violent crimes don’t qualify and certain felony charges can also disqualify someone. Tanuvasa and Rhode were not recently charged with violent crimes, and Young said neither case the men were incarcerated for involved guns.
“When that decision was made, they were in a position where they were considered low risk, and so that’s kinda the thing the DOC is dealing with,” Young said.
Young said those selected to serve their time or await sentence at a halfway house have incentive not to walk away. They can find “stability,” Young said, in having a roof over their heads and are able to have a job. He also said those who leave halfway houses can face higher sentences when their behaviors are taken into account by a judge.
Young noted the CRCs are contracted by the DOC, and staff are not allowed to physically prevent anyone from leaving.
KTVA 11′s Daniella Rivera and Shannon Riddle contributed to this report. Follow Daniella Rivera on Twitter and Facebook.
