Tag Archives: Alaska State Troopers
Illegal fishing shuts down Egegik district
In Bristol Bay’s Egegik district, it’s not uncommon to see some boats illegally fishing over the line. But this year seemed particularly bad, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. “We were receiving daily phone calls between Fish and Game and wildlife troopers, you know, multiple boats upwards of fifty at a time fishing outside of the district,” Tiernan said. That’s state biologist Aaron Tiernan. He says that during the peak of the season, extra Alaska State Troopers flood Bristol Bay from around the state. It’s a big effort. But as fishing winds down, the Alaska Department of Fish and Gamey start leaving to patrol other areas. “More and more reports come in. Because there’s less, there’s less enforcement going on overall. And we need to try to protect stocks that are going north and south or even into Egegik,” Tiernan said. So, in response, he decided to shut the fishery down. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:39
3 dead and 3 missing after landslide rips through remote Alaska fishing community
The slide, estimated to be 450 feet (137 meters) wide, occurred at about 9 p.m. Monday during a significant rain and windstorm near Wrangell, an island community of 2,000 people some 155 miles (250 kilometers) south of the state capital of Juneau. Rescue crews found the body of a girl in an initial search and late Tuesday the bodies of two adults were found by a drone operator. Searchers used a cadaver-sniffing dog and heat-sensing drones to search for two children and one adult unaccounted for after the disaster, while the Coast Guard and other vessels looked along a waterfront littered with rocks, trees and mud. >>click to read<< 08:53
Sinking of the Wild Alaskan – Document Dump #42
Document Dump #42 – In this Document Dump, I am releasing to the Public clear, convincing and undeniable evidence that certain Alaska State Troopers and Kodiak Chief of Police, Tim Putney are actively trying to cover-up one of Alaska’s biggest felony theft and destruction of property crimes in the history of this great state. I am a full supporter of Law Enforcement, just not the corrupt ones. As I have stated before, the actions of the Alaska State Troopers and the Alaska Bureau of Investigations have now morphed into a “HUB AND SPOKED WHEEL” RICO CONSPIRACY to cover-up a major crime which these people have no immunity from. There is no other way to explain it. Photos, >>click to read Document Dump #42<<. and more. 18:28
Trooper citations for salmon discards add grist to regional Alaska fishery dispute
For years, residents along the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers have accused fishers operating in marine waters north of the Alaska Peninsula of intercepting too many river-bound salmon, sometimes in hidden ways. Now a trooper enforcement campaign by the Alaska State Troopers wildlife division gives some credence to those accusations. The campaign, carried out in June and July in the region known as Area M, resulted in nine citations issued to captains and crew members for allegedly dumping unwanted salmon overboard, the Alaska State Troopers said in a statement issued Thursday. >click to read< 09:43
Captain dead, 2 crewmen survive sinking of F/V Pneuma in Nushagak Bay
The captain of a commercial fishing vessel died and two other crew members apparently escaped uninjured when it sank in southwest Alaska, authorities said. Lance Eric Norby, 45, of Texas, was identified as the captain, Alaska State Troopers said Friday. His remains were being sent to the State Medical Examiner in Anchorage. Two other people on board survived the incident, said the online dispatch report. The two survivors declined medical attention after being saved by Alaska Wildlife Troopers patrolling the area. >click to read< 14:14
1 fatality, 2 survive sinking of a commercial fishing boat in Nushagak Bay
Alaska State Troopers said one person is dead after a commercial fishing vessel sank toward the south side of Nushagak Bay on Thursday morning. Two additional people on board survived the incident, according to an online dispatch report,>click here<, and declined medical attention after being saved by Alaska Wildlife Troopers patrolling the area.,,, Troopers arrived and helped one person out of the water, while two commercial fishing vessels at the scene pulled the other two mariners out. “The Alaska Wildlife Troopers would like to thank the F/V Fortress and F/V Last Frontier for their assistance during the rescue operation,” >click to read< 18:26
Haines Landslide. Two Haines residents still missing as four of six are found safe
There are still two missing residents. Jenae Larson and David Simmons have been missing since Wednesday afternoon’s mudslide. They lived at the same Beach Road property now buried in rock, mud and debris. His father, Randall Simmons, spoke to him about two hours before the landslide. >click to read< Four of six feared missing in Haines landslide found safe – Searchers suspended operations late Wednesday as the slide continued to move. Six people were originally feared missing, but four were found safe by Thursday morning. Troopers said there were nine feet of mud and trees covering the area. Surrounding homes were evacuated, and a helicopter planned to deploy at sunrise to continue surveying by air. >click to read< Juneau salmon hatchery forced to destroy fish because of landslide damage – >click to read< 13:11
6 people missing, homes destroyed in southeast Alaska landslide – Coast Guard Responding
Six people were missing after a mudslide measuring an estimated two football fields across slammed into a neighborhood in the southeast Alaska community of Haines, Alaska State Troopers said Wednesday. An effort to fly search and rescue teams in a helicopter from Juneau was pushed back to Thursday morning, troopers said. A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew was launched from Sitka to assist, and the Coast Guard cutters Liberty and Anacapa have been ordered to make preparations to sail to Haines to provide additional support. >click to read< 13:52
Wrangell fisherman dies at sea near Nemo Point
A veteran fisherman from Wrangell has been found dead aboard his fishing boat 12 miles south of town. Authorities ID’d the deceased as 53-year-old Randall Ferdinand, a professional salmon troller. His body was recovered aboard his boat, the Chase River, which had run aground. Wrangell Search and Rescue chief Tim Buness says 12 members of his crew responded Sunday to a report of a vessel in apparent distress. “A local trapper was going by and observed it, that a boat was partially submerged >click to read< 18:36
1 passenger dead in Unalaska crash of PenAir plane flying from Anchorage that injured 10 others
A 38-year-old man from Washington state died when a PenAir plane went off the end of the runway Thursday afternoon at Unalaska’s airport, officials say. David Allan Oltman died of “traumatic injuries suffered in the crash,” according to updates Friday morning from Unalaska officials and Alaska State Troopers. Another critically injured passenger was flown to Anchorage. Nine others were also hurt, according to the city’s Department of Public Safety. Responders had to extricate one patient and evacuated the others. >click to read< 15:30
Wenatchee man killed in Alaska plane crash – Alaska State Troopers in a news release identified the man as 38-year-old David Allan Oltman. Marjie Veeder, a city of Unalaska spokeswoman, said Friday that he lived in Wenatchee. >click to read< 19:40
Coast Guard, Alaska State Troopers rescue man from a grounded vessel while on training mission
The Coast Guard and Alaska State Troopers coordinated efforts to locate and rescue a boater from a disabled and aground 40-foot fishing vessel 127 miles east-southeast of Cordova, Alaska, Wednesday. A Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak HC-130 Hercules aircrew located the operator of the fishing vessel Gambler while conducting a training flight in the area. The HC-130 aircrew dropped a radio to the man to communicate with him. After coordinating with Alaska State Troopers, the man was rescued from the shore, and was reported to be in good condition with no medical concerns. Video, >click to read<10:48
Kodiak man killed in Bering Sea fishing accident
A 55-year-old Kodiak resident died last week aboard a fishing vessel during a transfer operation in the Bering Sea, according to Alaska State Troopers. Alaska State Troopers said in an online dispatch that they learned Wednesday of Christopher O’Callaghan’s death aboard the 95-foot F/V Ocean Hunter. “O’Callaghan was on the deck while the vessel was tied off to another vessel in the open sea, transferring fish,” troopers wrote. “A slack line suddenly went taut, striking O’Callaghan on the chest, causing bruising and internal injuries, resulting in his death. >click to read< 13:15
Exonerated Suspect in Unsolved Alaska Fishing Boat Mass Murder Breaks His Silence
Thirty-five years have passed since the massacre of eight people on the fishing boat Investor first shocked the nation. For those whose lives were upended by the killings, the case remains a painful cloud that refuses to lift. For John Peel, the former deckhand who police and prosecutors suspected of committing the grisly slayings, the mystery is something else: a question mark that still hangs over his head. Peel was charged with the killings in 1984, but after two expensive, headline-grabbing trials, he was found not guilty. Decades later, the case is Alaska’s worst unsolved mass homicide. Video, click here to read the story 12:25
Remains of Two Fishermen in F/V Miss Destinee Capsizing Recovered from Vessel Cabin Identified
Alaska State Troopers report that the remains of the two people missing crew that were missing from the F/V Miss Destinee were located in the cabin of the vessel on July 4th. At 7:45 am on July 4th, a salvage company reported that they had managed to right the Miss Destinee and pump her out. The vessel was then towed to the Kodiak harbor. Upon arrival. AST, Kodiak City Fire and the USCG Marine Safety Detachment responded to the vessel and recovered the remains of the two previously missing crew, identified as Joshua Osborne, age 18, and Abigail Osborne, age 22, both of Wasilla. The State Medical Examiner’s office in Anchorage requested the remains for autopsy. click here to read the story 18:14
Crewmember Sentenced in July Bristol Bay Tender Assault, bannished from the fishing grounds
Alaska State Troopers reported the conclusion and conviction of a crewmember that assaulted his captain and a fellow crewmember on the F/V Diligence, a tender that was at the time moored in the Egegik Commercial Fishing District last summer. It was July 3rd that troopers responded to the assault complaint. 54-year-old Don Iodice was placed under arrest on the charge. On July 13th, Iodice was arraigned and by October, he entered a change of plea in the case. He was scheduled to be sentenced in the case on December 15th of last year, But, when the date arrived, Iodice didn’t. A $10,000 bench warrant was issued on January 19th, and Iodice was back in court on March 10th and his warrant was quashed. Five days later, Iodice was sentenced to 360 days with 330 suspended in Naknek District Court and placed on probation for two years. In addition, Iodice was ordered to not return to the fishing grounds in Bristol Bay. Link 17:09
Fisherman arrested after reportedly trying to ram fishing vessels with his fishing vessel near Sitka
A Klawock man faces a slew of charges, including boating under the influence, after Alaska State Troopers say he ran his fishing vessel over other vessels’ deployed gear near Sitka on Saturday. Troopers said in a Sunday dispatch that 33-year-old Timothy D. Demmert was taken into custody after several calls shortly before 2 p.m. Saturday, reporting “a fishing vessel attempting to ram other vessels” during the Sitka Sound winter salmon troll fishery near Cape Edgecumbe. Read the rest here 18:45
Man diving for sea cucumbers near Kodiak dies after medical airlift
A Kodiak man working as a commercial diver aboard a vessel taking part in a was airlifted to an area hospital Sunday — but Alaska State Troopers say he couldn’t be resuscitated. An initial call about the incident came in to Kodiak troopers at about 1:30 p.m. Sunday, after a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew flew 36-year-old Gary Graves to Providence Kodiak Island Medical Center’s emergency room. Graves had been diving from the fishing vessel Momo & Maddie. Read the rest here 15:54
Alaska State Troopers: 6 boats seized for fishing outside permitted area in Southwest
Six fishing vessels were seized this month after their operators were discovered drifting gillnets one to two nautical miles outside an open fishing area in Kulukak Bay in Southwest Alaska, state troopers say. The operators and permit holders aboard the boats were charged with misdemeanor commercial fishing in closed waters. Troopers said all the fishermen are from Togiak, a village of nearly 900 people 67 miles west of Dillingham. Read more here 12:38
Former Alaska Board of Fisheries Chairman Dan Coffey cited for violating fishing regulations
A state trooper on a boat patrol in the Peril Strait area, north of Sitka, found that crab traps belonging to Coffey had been baited with sport-caught king salmon, according to a written statement from the troopers. Under state fishing regulations, only salmon scraps can be used as bait, and “Coffey was using other than the head, tail, fins, closely trimmed skeleton, or viscera,” according to the troopers’ account. more@adn 09:05
2 Men Found Guilty of Commercial Fishing Violations
A couple of commercial fishermen were found guilty of violations last week in Naknek. 46-year old Sergie Chukwak of Naknek was cited by the State Troopers for fishing during a closed period near Naknek and he was found guilty of that charge during a bench trial on August 26th in the Naknek District Court. more@kdlg 14:41
Prosecutor drops United Fishermen of Alaska complaint without investigation
JUNEAU — After shutting down an Alaska State Troopers investigation that had barely begun, chief state prosecutor Richard Svobodny decided no criminal charges will be filed in response to a complaint from the United Fishermen of Alaska that someone at the offices of the Kenai River Sportfishing Association eavesdropped on its January board teleconference meeting. continued @ Alasksa Journal
