ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The U.S. Coast Guardhas identified the two Coast Guard members who were fatally shot Thursday at a communications station in Kodiak, which are being investigated by authorities as a double homicide.
A Friday statement from the Coast Guard says Petty Officer 1st Class James Hopkins, an electronics technician, and Richard Belisle, a civilian employee and retired Coast Guard chief petty officer, were the two men found dead at their posts between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. Thursday by another Coast Guard member.
Coast Guard Communications Station Kodiak, where about 60 people work, serves as the "ears in the sky" for radio transmissions from mariners and aircraft. People who want to enter must show identification, Coast Guard Petty Officer Charly Hengen said Thursday.
"It is a secure facility," she said.
The Kodiak Police Department, Alaska State Troopers and the FBI are all investigating the deaths, with the FBI taking a lead role in the case because the shootings occurred on federal property.
“The Coast Guard has been informed by the FBI that they are treating this investigation as a double homicide,” Coast Guard officials wrote. “There is no evidence to suggest these deaths are the result of a murder suicide. No arrests have been made and all residents are advised to use reasonable safety precautions and to report any suspicious activity to their local law enforcement agency.”
