Update, 9:50 a.m. March 20:
Alaska State Troopers have named the man who allegedly approached a trooper with a knife in Wasilla last month before he was shot and wounded.
In an updated online dispatch, troopers said 25-year-old Victor Jack was arrested Tuesday on a third-degree assault warrant in the Feb. 28 encounter. He was held at the Mat-Su Pretrial Facility.
According to the dispatch Trooper Toma Caldarea, a 20-year AST veteran, shot Jack during the incident. Caldarea was uninjured during the encounter.
Original story:
An Alaska State Trooper shot and wounded a man early Wednesday after a disturbance at a Wasilla home, as troopers say he stepped outside holding a knife.
Neither the wounded man nor the trooper were identified in an online dispatch about the incident Wednesday. Troopers had responded to a 911 call reporting a fight between two males at a Stacy Street home at about 1:15 a.m. Wednesday.
The first trooper to arrive detained one of the males involved in the fight inside a patrol vehicle.
“As the trooper was speaking to the detained male, the second male exited a residence armed with a knife,” troopers wrote in the dispatch. “The trooper gave repeated commands for the male to drop the knife; however, the male continued to approach the trooper while brandishing the knife. The trooper shot the adult male due to his actions.”
Medics took the wounded man to a hospital with serious injuries. Nobody else was injured during the encounter, troopers said.
Troopers spokesman Austin McDaniel said the cause of the initial fight is still under investigation, but alcohol appeared to be a contributing factor. No charges were immediately filed, but troopers say they are expected as the investigation continues.
The Alaska Bureau of Investigation is examining the case, which will be reviewed by the state Office of Special Prosecutions. The trooper who shot the man was placed on administrative leave, and will be identified in 72 hours under state policy.
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.
