Law Enforcement

Walt Monegan is currently President of the Alaska Native Justice Center, with a long history in Alaska law enforcement.  Monegan is of Yup'ik, Tlingit and Irish Heritage.   Among some of the other high profile roles Monegan has played in public service:  Public Safety Commissioner and Anchorage Police Chief,  with 33 years of service in the Anchorage Police Department. 

Radio station Movin' 105.7 is organizing Operation Teddy Bear and said Sunday they are still accepting stuffed animals. Next week the stuffed animals will be turned over to local law enforcement agencies in Anchorage and the Mat-Su Valley. The purpose is for officers to keep the stuffed animal in their vehicle and hand them out to children they come in contact with at crime and fire scenes. The purpose is to help children through a difficult time and create a bond between law enforcement and youth.

Expect hundreds of motorcycle riders in Southcentral Alaska starting next week. They're part of a cross-country race from Florida to the Last Frontier called the Hoka Hey Challenge. The race has some law-enforcement agencies on edge, and there are warnings for drivers. As summer roads stretch out in front of motorcyclists, it's easy to see why hundreds of them decided to ride from Florida to Homer. "This is their big adventure, it's a big vacation," said Craig "Blue" Breshears with Alaska Bikers Advocating Training and Education.

The FBI says Israel Keyes, who has already admitted to three killings, said he had killed at least five additional people as the FBI seeks more information from the public on his activities following his Sunday death in an Anchorage Jail cell. According to an FBI statement released Monday, Keyes, who confessed to killing barista Samantha Koenig and Essex, Vt. couple Bill and Lorraine Currier, is believed to have committed numerous kidnappings and murders across the nation over the course of 11 years, from 2001 until his March arrest in Lufkin, Texas.

On Friday, March 15, Senator Lisa Murkowski outlined a proposal with Alaska's tribal leaders that would create the framework to collaboratively solve the public safety crisis in rural Alaska. Murkowski's Rural Public Safety Initiative attempts to bring the State of Alaska and Alaska Native tribes together to increase both the public safety presence and authority to the most remote Alaskan communities. "We face a crisis of public safety in rural Alaska," said Senator Murkowski.

Tuesday dozens honored Hoonah police officers Matt Tokuoka and Tony Wallace with a motorcade through the streets of Anchorage. Alaska’s law enforcement community gathered together to honor the fallen officers. “To see them all gathered together like that, it's encouraging to know we have one another's back and we're there and willing to assist and help one another even through the grieving process,” said Lt. Dave Parker, APD. From Anchorage to Hoonah, law enforcement officers from across Alaska will be with their fallen comrades every step of the way. “We're all brother agencies.

Anchorage police released additional details Tuesday on the fatal July 1 shooting of a man who drew an airgun on officers in South Anchorage, the third fatal shooting by law enforcement officers this summer of a man not carrying a firearm. Harry Smith, 59, died after he was shot at a home on the 9000 block of Noble Circle, where he was reportedly despondent and threatening to harm himself and others. The officers who shot him, Bryan Heinz and Michael Jones, were cleared of wrongdoing by the state's Office of Special Prosecutions and Appeals.

by The Associated Press Sunday, December 3, 2010 KENAI, Alaska -- More than 50 professional Kenai River fishing guides have formed their own association. The new group, The Upper Kenai River Professional Guide Association, was formed last month. Association president Robert Gibson says the purpose of the group is to correct problems related to guided fishing on the upper Kenai River, and work to protect one of Alaska's premier rivers. Gibson says overcrowding on the Upper Kenai is a concern.

by The Associated Press Tuesday, February 02, 2010 FAIRBANKS, Alaska -- Officials in Fairbanks plan to conduct a survey later this month to determine the extent of gang activity. The survey will be mailed to 500 homes and given to students in seventh to 12th grades, if the parents agree. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports that by late March a task force will have a better understanding of gang activity and how to counter it. The project director for the Fairbanks Gang Reduction and Intervention Network, Shea Daniels, says the survey asks questions to determine why youngsters join gangs.

When the public learned that Anchorage police investigators found what they believe is the body of 18 year-old Samantha Koenig on Monday, many in the community -- as well as across the state and the country -- were shocked by the news. The two-month search for Koenig began after APD says she was abducted Feb. 1 from her workplace at Midtown coffee stand Common Grounds Espresso. On Tuesday, Koenig family spokesperson Michelle Tasker thanked law enforcement and the public for its support.