A Bethel woman has been indicted on a charge of manslaughter for allegedly fatally injecting her father with heroin. 35-year-old Shannon Cooke faces the charges for an incident from September 29th, 2014.
The state says that 56-year-old Thomas Tungwenuk was found unresponsive in an Anchorage apartment. Police and medics responded and the man was later pronounced dead at a hospital.
Daniel Shorey is an assistant district attorney in Anchorage.
“The manslaughter charge is for delivering heroin to her father, Thomas Tungwenuk. She is also charged with misconduct involving a controlled substance for the actual delivery of the heroin,” said Shorey.
The state medical examiner found that Tungwenuk had died of the acute combined effects of alcohol and heroin. Police received a report that Tungwenuk had injected himself and then was found by his daughter 30 to 45 minutes later, however the state alleges that Cooke injected him.
Cooke was arrested Friday by Bethel police. Bail was set at $20,000 with a third party custodian. If convicted, Cooke faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. A pre-trial conference before Judge Jack Smith in Anchorage is scheduled for May 13th.
Ben Matheson is a contributor with the Alaska Public Radio Network.
