Alaska State Troopers shot and killed a man near Anchor Point on Thursday [9/25] who they say brandished a knife after a footchase. Troopers say 30-year-old Tyler Moyer, of Anchorage, was wanted on a $50,000 felony arrest warrant.
An online dispatch describes troopers’ account of what happened.
Troopers say they located Moyer’s vehicle at the Stariski Campground just north of Anchor Point. Officers gave Moyer multiple commands to leave his vehicle, after which he fled on foot. After Moyer brandished a knife, a trooper shot him. Emergency first aid efforts were unsuccessful and Moyer was declared dead at the scene.
After troopers located Moyer’s car, they say a woman who was a passenger in the car tried to hurt herself. Troopers conclude their account by saying she was taken to a Homer hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The officer who shot Moyer is on seven days of administrative leave, per Department of Public Safety policy. The department was [is] expected to release the officer’s name on Sunday [9/28].
The troopers’ Bureau of Investigation is reviewing the shooting. After that, the state Office of Special Prosecutions decides if criminal charges are appropriate.
A trooper spokesperson [WEB: Austin McDaniel] says the incident was recorded by two troopers’ body-worn cameras and a dashboard camera. The footage won’t be publicly available until the bureau investigation concludes, prosecutors decide whether to bring charges and any court case is resolved.
Thursday’s shooting marks the third time Alaska State Troopers have fatally shot someone this summer. Last month, troopers shot and killed a man in Wasilla they say was armed with a handgun. Three troopers shot and killed a different man in Wasilla in June who they say drew a gun while officers tried to arrest him on an outstanding warrant.
On the Kenai Peninsula, Thursday’s shooting marks the third time in the last two years state troopers have shot and killed someone. Last year, troopers fatally shot a man in Kasilof who they say threatened officers with a harpoon. In January, troopers shot and killed a man after a four-hour standoff, also in Kasilof.
The state Office of Special Prosecutions separately charged two former Soldotna-based state troopers with felony assault last year. In that case, prosecutors say body-worn camera footage shows two troopers beating, tasing and having a police dog sic a man the troopers thought was someone else. That case is expected to go to trial next year.
