An Alaska State Trooper shot and killed a man Friday who was armed inside a Wasilla motorhome, according to the agency. It is the second time this summer troopers have fatally shot a person hiding in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough during an arrest attempt.
Troopers spokesperson Tess Williams identified the man Monday as Charles Hedgers, 32, saying he was shot near West Hollywood Road and Sylvan Lane.
According to an online dispatch, troopers went to a home in the area at about 1 p.m. Friday to arrest him on an outstanding parole warrant. He then ran from troopers, hiding in the bathroom of a motorhome on an adjacent property.
“Troopers breached the door and discovered the man was armed with a handgun,” troopers said in the dispatch. “Due to his actions, one Alaska State Trooper discharged their weapon and struck the man.”
Troopers and medics provided first aid, but Hedgers was declared dead at an area hospital.
Williams, the troopers spokesperson, said Hedgers had been armed with a Kimber Micro 9 9mm pistol, and that troopers “gave Hedgers numerous commands over several minutes while he was barricaded.” She said the shooting remained under investigation, and she did not yet have answers about whether Hedgers’ pistol was loaded, what actions he took and whether troopers had or considered using less-lethal tools like a Taser.
According to Williams, Hedgers had been sought in the continuing aftermath of a 2014 case involving thefts in Palmer and Wasilla. Court records show Hedgers pleaded guilty to a second-degree gun-theft charge and was sentenced to three years in prison and later put on probation.
The circumstances of Hedgers’ death are similar to those in the fatal June 14 shooting of Kyle Lambert, 34. Lambert had been sought for violating his release conditions on felony drug and theft charges, when troopers tracked him to a camper on a Houston property he was known to frequent.
Troopers say that Lambert refused commands to leave the camper, then produced a handgun when they entered to arrest him. Three troopers fatally shot him.
According to troopers, Hedgers’ shooting will be reviewed first by the Alaska Bureau of Investigation, and then by the state Office of Special Prosecutions. The trooper who shot him has been placed on seven days of administrative leave under department policy, and will be named three days after the shooting.
