Anchorage police say a man in a dispute with two relatives shot and killed a bystander trying to help, days before he allegedly stole two cars during a crosstown spree of crimes.
The charges against Anthony Tinker III, 29, describe him as suffering from mental health issues in both cases. Tinker stands accused of first-degree and second-degree murder in the Nov. 11 shooting of Brad Robert. Court records show the charges were filed Friday.
According to the charging document, police officers responded at about 1 a.m. to the 900 block of Chugach Way for multiple reports of gunfire. One of the callers, Robert’s girlfriend, told police a male and two females were involved in a disturbance outside their home.
“(The girlfriend) heard one of the females say, ‘Don’t touch my daughter,’” prosecutors wrote. “(They) thought the female was in ‘distress.’”
Robert stepped outside to speak with the three people, just before the gunfire.
Police found Robert dead with a single gunshot wound to the head, the charges say. Seven 5.56mm shell casings were lying on the ground, with a nearby trailer struck by some of the rounds.
Surveillance video in the area showed a male armed with a rifle and two females running from a parking lot on nearby Indiana Street, then running back after the shooting.
Tinker was first mentioned publicly by police after a separate set of incidents on the night of Nov. 14. Police initially took Tinker to Providence Alaska Medical Center’s psychiatric facility that evening after a witness said he “was yelling and appeared to be suffering from a mental health episode” along Minnesota Drive. He was released from Providence a few hours later and given a taxi voucher.
Police said Tinker asked for a ride to the Sullivan Arena, then stole the taxi. After crashing the taxi near East 6th Avenue and Fairbanks Street, Tinker allegedly stole another car at gunpoint then crashed it on the 5000 block of Van Buren Street.
Officers ultimately arrested Tinker in the early hours of Nov. 15, after he allegedly walked into an apartment carrying a handgun on the 2400 block of Bentzen Circle and ordered everyone to leave. SWAT units deployed gas to make Tinker leave the apartment, but police say he didn’t respond to commands. Two K-9 units bit his arms, and Tinker was taken to a hospital for treatment before being charged with assault, burglary and vehicle theft.
The shooting investigation didn’t lead to Tinker until Nov. 17, when the two people in the Chugach Way disturbance with Tinker – both relatives – spoke with investigators at an Indiana Street residence.
“They followed Anthony Tinker to this location, saw Tinker shoot Brad Robert, and then all three ran back to the residence,” investigators wrote.
The two said Tinker left Indiana Street at least twice to change his clothing after the shooting.
“Tinker took the firearm he used to shoot Robert with him and never brought it back to the residence,” investigators wrote. “APD has not yet recovered this firearm.”
Alaska inmate records listed Tinker as still in custody Monday morning. Court records showed his bail in charges from the Nov. 14 incident was set at $20,000, with a third-party custodian required for his release.
Chris Klint is a web producer and breaking news reporter at Alaska Public Media. Reach him at cklint@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Chris here.
