A Fairbanks man convicted of sexually abusing two children has been sentenced to spend the rest of his life behind bars.
   
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports 57-year-old Arthur J. Augustine was found guilty earlier this year by a jury that deliberated for less than a day.
   
Augustine was sentenced this week in Fairbanks Superior Court to four consecutive 99-year terms. That adds up to 396 years in prison.
   
He was convicted of two counts of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor and two counts of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor.
   
The abuse occurred between January 2011 and February 2012.
   
In the early 1980s, Augustine was convicted of sexually abused two girls in Fairbanks.

They're built to last for decades, but even bridges tend to wear out over time mainly due to daily use by the same people who pay for and build them: us.

"Probably the biggest wear and tear on bridges, especially in the state of Alaska, are actually heavy loads, that travel across them," said Department of Transportation Spokesman Jeremy Woodrow.

Every bridge in Alaska is inspected at least once every two years under federal requirements.  That regimen has been in place since a bridge collapse in Minnesota killed 13 people in 2007.  No lives were lost Thursday night when a bridge along Interstate 5 collapsed north of Seattle.  Officials believe an overloaded semi-truck struck a support beam causing the collapse.

"The incident that occurred in Washington State is a very isolated incident," adds Woodrow.   "While those types of bridges are very common across the U.S., it has to take the right type of incident for that to occur."

Truck drivers are required to have their loads inspected at weigh stations and they could be ticketed for carrying too much weight.

"There are legal weight limits to protect both the highways and bridges," said Executive Director of the Alaska Trucking Association Aves Thompson.  "If we want to exceed those legal weight limits, an operator must receive an over sized or over weight permit."

Thompson says his drivers are sometimes the most reliable bridge inspectors since they traverse the state frequently.

"Bridges need replacement, bridges need repair," adds Thompson.  "We continue to advocate with the legislature to fund the DOT to make the necessary upgrades to both highways and bridges."

Although many of us take them for granted until something catastrophic happens like a collapse, truckers and DOT officials know bridges may be built to last but they don't last forever.

Contact Adam Pinsker

The National Weather Service has issued a flood warning for the Salcha River because of snow melting amid warm temperatures.
   
The rising water has broken up large chunks of ice in the upper part of the river, which could quickly form ice jams.
   
The weather agency says water will quickly rise behind these jams and could trigger flooding with little warning.
   
People along the river should move property to higher ground away from river banks.  Campers and hikers are warned to avoid low-lying areas.
   
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports that temperatures in the 70s are expected Saturday and Sunday.

Police confiscated hashish, heroin and marijuana in a pair of drug investigations in Juneau.
   
The Juneau Empire reports a regional drug task force arrested 54-year-old Daniel Meschonnic late Friday while seizing heroin. The man was booked into the Lemon Creek Correctional Center on a felony drug accusation.
   
A day earlier, investigators seized hashish and marijuana they believe was ultimately destined for Haines.
   
Alaska State Troopers has recommended a suspect be charged with two felonies for attempted misconduct involving controlled substances. The Juneau District Attorney's Office is reviewing the case.
   
The suspect's name has not been released because he or she has not been charged.

Contact Blake Essig

A fire started in a midtown four-plex at about 7:40 p.m. Saturday and 13 units with the Anchorage Fire Department responded.

According to AFD dispatchers, the fire occurred on the 800 block of W. 25th Avenue near the Spenard area near Arctic and Fireweed. The roof of the structure was fully engulfed in flames. No injuries were reported.

This is a developing story. Please check back later for updates.

KTUU's Neil Torquiano contributed to this story.

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A continuing demand for ammunition by Fairbanks gun owners is keeping bullets off store shelves in the interior Alaska city.
   
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports ammo for popular calibers often sells out shortly after it arrives at stores such as Sportsman's Warehouse.
   
The surge in sales is part of a national trend. It's also helped create a secondary market for ammo at gun shows where sellers can ask for and receive inflated prices.
   
Longtime firearms instructor and radio show host Joe Nava says part of the shortage is caused by enthusiasts buying up bullets when they see low inventory in stores. He says he does so himself and has not had a supply problem.
   
He says large purchases by government agencies also contribute to the shortage.

Some of Anchorage's top amateur and professional magicians showed off some tricks of the magic trade Saturday evening at the Anchorage Community Theater.

The Alaska Magic Circle held its first Memorial Day magic festival featuring magicians, clowns and other entertainers.

"Normally we do one or two club shows a year, we do a reading program at the library as part of a national magic week kickoff in October and we also do one for in the winter like in February, but it got pushed back to this time so we're hoping this will be a good event to keep going," Don Russell, President of Alaska Magic Circle, said.

The show included mind reading, card tricks, rope tricks and even floating items.

"They're really excited to put on a show and want to show it with everybody and our group is open to any magic enthusiasts, they don't have to be performers or anything, but they're open to, we're open to everybody," Russell said.

"Something that's totally impossible that can't be done that actually happens in front of your eyes and people go 'how'd you do that,' and of course my explanation is 'I don't know, you wanna see it again?'"


Contact Neil Torquiano

STORY UPDATED AT 3:31 p.m. at 5/26/13:


(Photo: Jerry Andrew Active, 24, charged with double murder May 26, 2013. To view a full photo gallery, click here.)

The man accused of killing two grandparents and sexually assaulting the couple's 2-year-old granddaughter in Mountain View made his first court appearance Sunday afternoon.

Anchorage police alleged Jerry Andrew Active, 24, murdered Touch Chea, 73, and his wife Sorn Sreap, 71, at their apartment when the couple were babysitting their granddaughter Saturday evening.

Active refused to identify himself when he was arrested and was charged as "John Doe," according to police. On Sunday, police said "staff at the Anchorage Jail identified him from previous contacts."

During his arraignment, Active covered his face with the 4-page charging document. The magistrate read all seven charges against him, including the punishments for each crime.

The charges were two counts of murder in the first degree, two counts of murder in the second degree, sexual Assault in the first degree, sexual abuse of a minor in the first degree, and burglary.

There was courthouse disturbance during his arraignment when the magistrate read count six, the charge of a sexual abuse of a minor. Another suspect awaiting his arraignment yelled expletives towards Active and jail security escorted the man away from the holding area.

The magistrate set bail with a $500,000 appearance bond and a $1 million performance bond with a third party custodian. His next court appearance will be Tuesday, May 28.



STORY UPDATED AT 2:36 p.m. at 5/26/13:


(Photo: Anchorage police investigate double homicide May 25, 2013. To view a full photo gallery, click here.)

Anchorage police say a man has been charged with killing two grandparents Saturday evening in Mountain View and has also been charged with sexually assaulting the grandmother and the couple's 2-year-old granddaughter.

The victims were identified as Touch Chea, 73, and his wife Sorn Sreap, 71, and police said, "both showed signs of significant blunt force injuries and [Sreap] had been sexually assaulted."

The man taken into custody has refused to identify himself and has been charged as "John Doe," according to the Anchorage Police Department.

Police responded to the crime scene at 7:56 p.m. at apartment complex on the 400 block of North Bragaw Street.

In an emailed statement, police wrote, "on an open 911 call, dispatchers could hear screaming; a female adult advised dispatch that a man had broken into her residence and killed her grandmother. The caller stated the male, dressed in boxer shorts and socks, with several tattoos, was fleeing the residence. Anchorage Police captured the man moments later in the area of 329 Irwin Street, about a block from the scene."

The police investigation found that the female caller and her husband lived at the apartment with their two young children, her grandparents, and a 90-year-old great grandmother. The couple, in their 20s, went to the movies with their 4-year-old son and left the 2-year-old with the grandparents.

The couple arrived home and found the door locked from the inside and forced their way through a window and found the bodies, according to police. The couple also found an unknown Native male, in his 20's, "completely naked in the bedroom with their 2 year old daughter. A confrontation ensued between the three ending in the man slipping into a pair of boxer shorts and running away."

A forensic physical examination revealed the girl had been sexually assaulted and she was taken to a hospital for surgery for her injuries.

An autopsy will be performed to determine the exact cause of death for the grandparents.

"John Doe" has been charged with two counts of murder in the first degree, two counts of murder in the second degree, sexual assault in the first degree, sexual assault of a minor in the first degree, and burglary.  He was arraigned Sunday afternoon and held without bail.

Editor's Note: Clarifies identities of murder victims as Touch Chea, 73, and his wife Sorn Sreap, 71, along with spelling of Sreap instead of Sreak. Anchorage police erred names in Sunday news release.  KTUU's Neil Torquiano contributed to an update of this story.

STORY UPDATED AT 10:48 p.m. at 5/25/13:


(Photo: Anchorage police investigate double homicide May 25, 2013. To view a full photo gallery, click here.)

Anchorage police detectives are investigating the double homicide of a man and a woman in Mountain View on Saturday night.  According to the Anchorage Police Department, the man and woman were found dead in an apartment at the 400 block of North Bragaw street.

Police say the relationship between the man and woman is unclear at this time. The APD Crime Scene team is processing the scene and detectives are questioning a person of interest but police say no one has been charged with the crime.

This is a developing story. Please check back later for updates.

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Anchorage police said a man has non-life-threatening injuries after being shot in the hand Monday evening.

Police responded to a shooting at the Royal Suite Lodge on Minnesota Drive shortly after 6 p.m., where witnesses heard three shots from the parking lot of the hotel.

A suspect was reported to have run off to the east of the lodge, while a friend drove the victim to the Providence Hospital.

Police at the scene of the shooting said they were gathering interviews with the ample witnesses outside on the sunny evening.

"There was actually a barbecue going on on the back side of the hotel," said Sgt. Michael Kerle. "There were a lot of people outside and a lot of witnesses to the crime that occurred."

Police did not have a suspect in custody at 11 p.m., Monday.

They said they don't believe the suspect is a danger to the public because the shooting was the result of a personal dispute.

UPDATED STORY (5/28/2013, 4:15 A.M.)

Anchorage police are searching for a suspect from a stabbing that took place Monday night.

According to Anchorage Police Department Seargent Sean Case, an unidentified man was walking in the Northway Mall parking lot around 9:30 p.m. when a blue pickup drove up beside him. A passenger then got out of the vehicle and stabbed the man three times. The suspect got back into the truck and drove away.

The unidentified victim told responding officers that he knew the suspect from time served in jail in Alaska.

The victim was taken to the Alaska Native Medical Center in serious condition with non-life-threatening injuries.

Police continue to search for the suspect who faces felony warrants.

Channel 2's Sheila Balistreri and Jessica Ridgway contributed to this update.

ORIGINAL STORY (5/27/2012, 10:57 P.M.)


(Photo: Anchorage Police responded to reports of a stabbing around on the 3400 block of Penland Park near the Northway Mall in East Anchorage May 27, 2013.)

Anchorage Police responded to reports of a stabbing around 9:30 p.m. Monday on the 3400 block of Penland Parkway near the Northway Mall in East Anchorage.

One man, who wished to remain anonymous, says the victim was his nephew. The source says his 25-year-old nephew was walking towards the Carrs in Northway Mall when he was allegedly stabbed in the back twice, with one of the wounds about three inches long.

While police cannot confirm, the source believes the stabbing was a gang-related retaliation for something that happened in a Colorado prison.

Officers on scene were unable to confirm or release any details regarding the stabbing.

This is a developing story.

Contact Blake Essig

Alaska State Troopers have identified a child that died in an all-terrain vehicle accident Sunday evening in the community of Two Rivers near Fairbanks.

Troopers say the girl who died was 12-year-old Robyn Blemke of Two Rivers. Troopers say she lost control of the ATV off of Chena Hot Springs Road while driving it about 200 feet south of the turnoff from Two Rivers Elementary School on Two Rivers Road. She was killed when the machine rolled over.

A 13-year-old passenger, whose name was not released, was thrown from the ATV and sustained minor injuries. Both children were wearing helmets.

Alaska State Troopers say a woman has been arrested for endangering the welfare of a child after she allowed her 13-year-old son to drive on the Parks Highway.

Troopers said in an online report Monday that 44-year-old Alissa Bustillo of Tok was also charged with drunken driving and allowing an unauthorized person to drive.

The Anchorage Daily News reports that Bustillo was in the passenger seat when her pickup was pulled over for driving dangerously.

She was taken to the Fairbanks Correctional Center.

The mother of a 4-month-old baby who died in 2010 is expected to testify Tuesday when the trial against the baby's father resumes.

David Paul of Juneau has been charged with murder and manslaughter in the death of Rian Orr. The Juneau Empire reportsthe doctor who cared for the infant at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle testified Friday that the "constellation of her injuries" led him to believe the girl had been abused.

The defense contends the infant had a chronic subdural hematoma and a clotting problem that went unnoticed.

The baby's mother Jacqueline Orr began her testimony last week. She expressed guilt at not spending more time with her daughter, but combated the defense's portrayal of her as a "disinterested" mother. Orr said she was the baby's primary caretaker and changed more diapers than Paul.

Anchorage police say a dozen vehicles were involved in Glenn Highway collisions Tuesday morning, but only one person was sent to the hospital as a result of them.

APD spokesperson Dani Myren says in a Tuesday statement that officers responded to the first collision on the Glenn -- inbound between the North Birchwood and South Peters Creek exits -- at about 6:20 a.m.

"According to those involved, a traffic incident occurred in front of a group of inbound vehicles, causing a series of domino-like collisions that ultimately involved 10 vehicles," Myren wrote. "No serious injuries were reported and no citations have been issued at this time."

According to Myren, little information has come to light on what caused the initial series of collisions.

"We don't know," Myren said. "The people involved had indicated there was some sort of incident, but it wasn't clearly defined."

The initial crash led to a separate two-vehicle wreck at about 6:30 a.m., involving a vehicle which was rear-ended near North Birchwood.

"It appears this collision may have occurred when one vehicle rear-ended another due to the unanticipated stop in traffic caused by the other collision," Myren wrote.

According to APD, one person from the second crash was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Myren says drivers can help prevent collisions by slowing down, driving defensively and leaving adequate spacing between vehicles on the road.

Contact Chris Klint

Alaska State Troopers say a Delta Junction woman died Sunday afternoon after her motorcycle struck a guardrail on the Alaska Highway.

According to a Tuesday AST dispatch, troopers learned at about 4:40 p.m. Sunday that a driver had found the body of Gail Ericksen, 48, along with a motorcycle near Mile 1362.5 of the highway. Troopers with the Alaska Bureau of Highway Patrol responded to investigate the wreck.

"Subsequent investigation revealed that Ericksen was traveling on a motorcycle and was negotiating a corner when she struck a guard rail and was thrown from the motorcycle," troopers wrote. "She received fatal wounds from the wreck."

Troopers say Ericksen was wearing appropriate safety gear at the time of the crash. Her next of kin have been notified.

AST spokesperson Megan Peters wasn't immediately available for comment on the crash Tuesday.

Contact Chris Klint

Severe flooding on the Yukon River has forced hundreds of Galena residents to be evacuated by air as of Tuesday afternoon, with state officials saying other areas downriver may also be threatened.

John Madden, the director of the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, says residents have been taken to several other communities by airplanes and helicopters, including Fairbanks, Ruby and Tanana, since flooding began to threaten the town Monday.

Residents say local pilots volunteered to fly passengers to Ruby and Fairbanks on Monday night.

Alyson Esmailka, a Galena resident who evacuated from her home to Fairbanks on Tuesday, says the community looks like a lake.

Esmailka made Galena her permanent home in 1995.

"The sewer lagoon-- it's been flooded, the church, the churches are flooded, the elders center has been...it's got ice packed around it and probably flooded," Esmailka said.

Esmailka says the water rose so quickly loved ones were separated from each other.

"There were people stuck on one side of the road, mothers from their kids kids were on the other side of the road," Esmailka said.

Esmailka says some of her neighbors chose to stay at home, but later changed their minds once the water levels reached their doorsteps.

Not all residents have been evacuated from Galena.

"We've evacuated with the community and through the Tanana Chiefs Conference about 250 people, and there are another 64 that are likely to be evacuated today," Madden said. "That's a mixture of people who -- maybe the elders or those who have medical needs, as well as a precautionary that several people have chosen on their own to leave."

A variety of support workers have been on hand in Galena for the duration of the crisis, according to Madden.

"We've had people from the state there from the very beginning even before the water was rising, along with a hydrologist from the National Weather Service," Madden said. "They're providing the advice and counsel to the leadership of the community now."

American Red Cross of Alaska spokesperson Laura Spano says the group's workers are helping evacuees with shelter and other immediate needs, as well as those who still remain in town.

"In Galena, two community shelters are open at local Galena schools," Spano wrote. "Flood waters persist but are expected to subside in Galena as the ice jam dam breaks and floats downriver. Excess waters that are held as spring breakup ice are expected to affect many communities along the Yukon as it heads to the mouth in the coming week. Warm temperatures are also rapidly increasing snowmelt and adding to rising river levels."

Madden says rather than producing widespread flooding on the Yukon, 2013's pattern has concentrated high waters in a few places along the river.

"This year has been highly selective -- it hit Circle, then it hit (Fort Yukon)," Madden said. "It bypassed a few with rising waters, and now it's going in very heavily at Galena."

State officials are still watching the flooding along the river, which is expected to continue for the immediate future.

"We're not through with this yet, there are several days before this water and the ice will continue all the way out to the Bering Sea," Madden said.

"I've seen floods, but i've never seen a flood like this," Esmailka said.

Channel 2's Samantha Angaiak contributed information to this story.

Contact Chris Klint

Scientists have downgraded the threat level of Alaska's Pavlof Volcano.

The Alaska Volcano Observatory says it lowered the advisory level for Pavlof on Tuesday from orange to yellow, which means activity has decreased significantly but continues to be closely monitored.

The volcano 625 miles southwest of Anchorage began erupting May 13.

Scientists reported plumes of steam, gas and ash reached up to 22,000 feet and were visible on satellite images and from nearby communities. Seismic activity was elevated.

The observatory says the 8,262-foot volcano has calmed over the past three days but adds that the pause doesn't necessarily mean the eruption has ended.

Cleveland Volcano, 940 miles southwest of Anchorage, remains at orange, with slightly elevated surface temperatures indicating a cooling lava flow.

Days after an elderly couple was murdered and their 2-year-old great-granddaughter was sexually assaulted, the Mountain View community is stepping up to help out the family.

Police say the attack that left Touch Chea, 73, and wife Sorn Sreap, 71, dead appears to be a random act by a complete stranger -- 24-year-old Jerry Andrew Active, who is in custody and charged with murdering the couple, as well as sexually assaulting Sreap and the 2-year-old. Other strangers in the community, however, are giving the victims' relatives a hand.

Miriam Aarons, a mother of a 3-year-old son with twin boys on the way, heard about the murders on the news. She said she wanted to do something to show support, and demonstrate that someone does care.

"I just want to show that Anchorage really cares and help them, because I know this has got to be tough on so many different levels," Aarons said.

Aarons connected with Northway Mall manager Ma'o Tosi. Together, they're holding a fundraiser Wednesday to raise money toward funeral costs for Chea and Sreap, as well as care costs for the assaulted 2-year-old.

Tosi says this is an incident that could have happened to anyone anywhere in Alaska, which is why he is urging the community to help out.

"As Alaskans, this is what we do -- we unite and we figure out how to help this family as best as we can, to show them there are really good people out here, and hopefully they will feel that love from us," Tosi said.
 
The mall's Wednesday fundraiser for the victims' family will feature a car wash from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the parking lot, as well as a concert from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. All of the proceeds will go directly to the family.

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