A 19-year-old man is now charged with murder in the shooting of a woman who was found wounded near downtown Anchorage Sunday and later died, according to police.
Police said in an updated statement Wednesday morning that Jacob Berkey faces a second-degree murder charge in the death of Kawena Naleieha, 26.
According to the statement, police responded at about 8 a.m. Sunday to a reported woman in distress near North Post Road and East 1st Avenue, an industrial area near Ship Creek a few blocks north of the Anchorage Correctional Complex. Naleieha was found with upper-body trauma and taken to a local hospital. Police said Tuesday afternoon that she had died of her injuries.
Police said a search found a vehicle associated with the shooting, and investigators believed they have spoken with everyone involved.
“At the conclusion of the detectives' interviews, a suspect was identified,” police said Wednesday.
A police spokesperson declined to answer detailed questions about the shooting and the investigation Wednesday. A charging document against Berkey with more information was also not yet available.
Police said Berkey was arrested and held at the Anchorage Correctional Complex.
Naleieha’s death is Anchorage’s 19th homicide this year, after three deaths on Sept. 9 including the double shooting of Carl Nielsen Jr., 44, and Sara Ashley Cummings, 34, near Davis Park in Mountain View. By Wednesday, police had not announced any arrests in that case.
Later on Sept. 9, police say Matthew Siavalua, 20, fatally shot another man during a fight before turning himself in. He now faces a second-degree murder charge.
