A 12-year-old girl was shot and killed in Muldoon Tuesday night, and a juvenile boy is in custody, according to Anchorage police.
Police have released few details about the shooting, saying the investigation is ongoing.
According to an Anchorage Police Department statement, officers responded just before 6:30 p.m. to reports of the shooting, on the 2200 block of Muldoon Road. Police say the girl, initially described by police only as a juvenile, was shot in the upper body and declared dead at the scene.
Detectives questioned the suspect overnight Tuesday, describing him as a male juvenile. He was taken to the McLaughlin Youth Center with charges forwarded to the state Division of Juvenile Justice, according to police.
Police say they will not be releasing the name of the girl killed because of her age. The male suspect also has not been identified because of his age.
Begich Middle School Assistant Principal Laura Carter notified families on Wednesday of the death of a student.
“I am writing with great sadness to inform you that one of our students was the victim of a tragedy in our community yesterday,” she wrote in the message. “While we cannot comment on any specifics around this incident, we do know that the passing of a student is deeply impactful.”
Carter urged families to speak with their students, and said a Crisis Response Team would be at the school Thursday.
Police say the shooting appears to be an isolated event. The death is Anchorage’s 26th homicide of 2022.
Editor’s note: This story was updated Dec. 1 with additional information from the Anchorage School District and police.
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.
