Tag Archives: Murder in Alaska

The Birdman of Alcatraz



You might not associate The Birdman of Alcatraz with Alaska, but Robert Stroud, often called the Birdman, once lived in Alaska, and after murdering a man in a Juneau bar, he spent the rest of his life, 54 years. He was in solitary confinement for 42 of those years. Stroud is one of Alaska’s most famous criminals, and if you are like me, you will find his story is fascinating.

 

Sources:

Robert Stroud Biography (1890-1963). Biography.
https://www.biography.com/crime-figure/robert-stroud-birdman-of-alcatraz

Robert Franklin Stroud. Murderpedia.
https://murderpedia.org/male.S/s/stroud-robert.htm

Brennan, Tom. 2001. Birdman of Alcatraz. Murder at 40 Below. Epicenter Press

Bovsun, Mara. 2019. Justice Story: How the “Birdman of Alcatraz” soared to fame. New York Daily News.
https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/ny-birdman-of-alcatraz-20191110-o4bduk3cjzg43e5h2pxrojec4i-story.html

 

__________________________________________________________________________

If you would like to support Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier? Become a patron and join The Last Frontier Club.
Each month I will provide one or more of the following to club members.
· An extra episode of Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier available only for club members.
· Behind the scenes glimpses of life and wildlife in the Kodiak wilderness.
· Breaking news about ongoing murder cases and new crimes in Alaska
· Merchandise or discounts on MMLF merchandise or handmade glass jewelry. Become a Patron!

______________________________________________________________________________

Check out the store: Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier merchandise.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Subscribe to my free, monthly Murder and Mystery Newsletter for more stories about true crime and mystery from Alaska.
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___________________________________________________________________________

Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.


The Killer Who Hibernated in Alaska



Retirees Robert and Dagmar Linton eagerly embarked on a long-planned camping trip in the Pacific Northwest, and they promised their children they would be careful. The Lintons did not express concerns about their journey, but Dagmar made sure their wills and affairs were in order before they left home. Was she just cautious, or did she have a premonition something terrible would befall them? Her son and daughter would always wonder if their mother had concerns, and they would never know what exactly happened to their parents.

Kenny Lake

Sources
Charles T. Sinclair. Murderpedia. Available at: https://murderpedia.org/male.S/s/sinclair-charles.htm

Charles T. Sinclair. Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_T._Sinclair

Smith, Pete. 1-18-2016. 2015 Coin Shop Murders Add to a Long List of Tragic Ends for the Hobby. Coinweek.com. Available at: https://coinweek.com/people-in-the-news/crime-and-fraud/2015-coin-shop-murders/
McMillan, Penelope.

11/23/1990. Suspect in Murder Spree Takes Secrets to the Grave: Serial killings: Detectives are convinced the man who died in Alaska cell left trail of bodies across West. Los Angeles Times. Available at: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-11-23-mn-5200-story.html

Ice Cold Killers. Season 2, Episode 3. Devil’s Den.

 

 

 

 

______________________________________________________________________________

If you would like to support Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier? Become a patron and join The Last Frontier Club.
Each month I will provide one or more of the following to club members.
· An extra episode of Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier available only for club members.
· Behind the scenes glimpses of life and wildlife in the Kodiak wilderness.
· Breaking news about ongoing murder cases and new crimes in Alaska
· Merchandise or discounts on MMLF merchandise or handmade glass jewelry. Become a Patron!

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Check out the store: Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier merchandise.

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Subscribe to my free, monthly Murder and Mystery Newsletter for more stories about true crime and mystery from Alaska.
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___________________________________________________________________________

Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.


The Unhappy Wife



Sitka, Alaska

We all know married couples who seem to thrive on discord. These are the people we avoid joining for dinner and the ones in whose presence we squirm as they argue, yell, and threaten. We wonder why they got married, and if they divorce, we’re certain no one else would want either one of them. Still, I’ve met couples who not only manage to survive their contentious relationships but enjoy sparring with their partners. Marriage is hard, but most of us try, at least for a while, to make a relationship work, and if it doesn’t work, we leave and go our separate ways. Jane and Scott Coville constantly fought, even before they moved to Alaska and married, but Jane did not divorce Scott; there was no need to sever ties with him because Scott conveniently disappeared. Did he grow disillusioned with Jane, marriage, and life in Alaska? Did Scott take off on his own for an adventure somewhere else, a place far away from his current responsibilities, or did something much more sinister happen to Scott Coville?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

James Pietragallo & Jimmie Whisman. 11-22-2017. Small Town Murder Podcast #45. The Hottest Cold Case Around in Sitka, Alaska. https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/small-town-murder/e/52324451?autoplay=true

Scott Michael Coville. The Charley Project. http://charleyproject.org/case/scott-michael-coville

Grove, Casey. May 31, 2016. Mother in cold case describes years wondering about her son. Anchorage Daily News. https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/article/mother-cold-case-describes-years-wondering-about-her-son/2010/11/28/

Jane Reth. Murderpedia. https://murderpedia.org/female.R/r/reth-jane.htm

Sitka, Alaska. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sitka,_Alaska

________________________________________________________________________

If you would like to support Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier? Become a patron and join The Last Frontier Club.
Each month I will provide one or more of the following to club members.
· An extra episode of Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier available only for club members.
· Behind the scenes glimpses of life and wildlife in the Kodiak wilderness.
· Breaking news about ongoing murder cases and new crimes in Alaska
· Merchandise or discounts on MMLF merchandise or handmade glass jewelry
Become a Patron!

________________________________________________________________________

Check out the store: Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier merchandise.

___________________________________________________________________________

Subscribe to my free, monthly Murder and Mystery Newsletter for more stories about true crime and mystery from Alaska.
Join me on:
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Instagram
Twitter
LinkedIn
Visit my website at http://robinbarefield.com
Check out my books at Author Masterminds

______________________________________________________________________________

Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.

 

 


Murder on Shuyak Island



On November 12th, 2015, Peter, the Island Air, mail-plane pilot, landed at Port William Wilderness Lodge on Shuyak Island. The lodge occupies an old cannery, and Peter found this stop memorable because instead of both of the lodge’s caretakers greeting him, as usual, only one caretaker, 44-year-old Steven Ridenour, met the plane. Peter wondered why the other caretaker, Steven McCaulley, 56, also did not arrive to help unload the freight. Since the tide was high, the plane could not pull up to the beach, and Ridenour had to ferry the mail to shore by boat. Without McCaulley there to assist, the job proved difficult and time-consuming. Peter also found it curious that Ridenour simply stacked the freight above the high-tide mark, grabbed his gear, and jumped on the plane for a ride back to Kodiak. Ridenour then flew to Anchorage where he lived.

On November 15th, Steven Ridenour called the manager of Port William Wilderness Lodge, told him he’d quit his job, and asked for his past four paychecks. On November 17th, Steven Ridenour’s brother, Don, called the lodge manager and said his brother sent him and other family members Facebook messages stating he killed his fellow caretaker, Steven McCaulley, in self-defense, and he needed money to leave the state. The manager contacted the Alaska State Troopers and requested a welfare check on McCaulley at the lodge.

SOURCES:

Christiansen, Scott. 3-17-2017. I killed a man on Shuyak who tried to kill me with a chainsaw. Kodiak Daily Mirror. Available at http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/news/article_533bfb52-0abc-11e7-bc83-97c66a534f34.html

Christiansen, Scott. 3-15-2017. Shuyak Island killing case goes to trial. Kodiak Daily Mirror. Available at http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/news/article_cc2b2096-0923-11e7-a7e6-7b4185115b1c.html

Christiansen Scott. 4-7-2017. Murder defendant’s phone messages point to heavy drinking. Kodiak Daily Mirror. Available at http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/news/article_2f0b2b10-1b3b-11e7-8882-af591c19cbde.html

Associated Press. 9-20-2018. Anchorage man sentenced to 62 years in murder of co-worker at lodge near Kodiak. Anchorage Daily News. Available at https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/crime-courts/2018/09/20/anchorage-man-sentenced-to-62-years-in-murder-of-co-worker-at-lodge-near-kodiak/

__________________________________________________________________________
If you would like to support Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier? Become a patron and join The Last Frontier Club.
Each month I will provide one or more of the following to club members.
· An extra episode of Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier available only for club members.
· Behind the scenes glimpses of life and wildlife in the Kodiak wilderness.
· Breaking news about ongoing murder cases and new crimes in Alaska
· Merchandise or discounts on MMLF merchandise or handmade glass jewelry
Become a Patron!

__________________________________________________________________________
Check out the store: Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier merchandise.

___________________________________________________________________________

Subscribe to my free, monthly Murder and Mystery Newsletter for more stories about true crime and mystery from Alaska.
Join me on:
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Twitter
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Visit my website at http://robinbarefield.com
Check out my books at Author Masterminds
___________________________________________________________________________
Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.

 


Who Murdered Bonnie Craig?



Bonnie Craig

I can’t imagine the agony of losing a child for any reason, but how does a mother cope when she learns someone murdered her daughter, and she knows terror and pain must have marked the last moments of her child’s life? The book Justice for Bonnie deals with this issue. The well-written book profiles a mother’s fight to learn the truth about what happened to her daughter.

Kenneth Dion Anchorage Daily News
Sources:

To read more about Bonnie Craig and her mother’s fight for justice, I highly recommend Justice for Bonnie.

Holland, Magan. 5/2/2007. DNA links prison inmate to 1994 Bonnie Craig murder. Anchorage Daily News.
http://www.sitnews.us/0507news/050207/050207_shns_dna_arrest.html
Mann, Camille. 5/18/2011. Kenneth Dion, ex-soldier on trial for 1994 murder of Alaska coed Bonnie Craig. CBS News.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/kenneth-dion-ex-soldier-on-trial-for-1994-murder-of-alaska-coed-bonnie-craig/

http://www.sitnews.us/0507news/050207/050207_shns_dna_arrest.html
6/15/2011. Dion Convicted of Killing Bonnie Craig 17 Years Ago. Alaska Public Media.
https://www.alaskapublic.org/2011/06/15/dion-convicted-of-killing-bonnie-craig-17-years-ago/

Grove, Casey. 10/31/2011. Bonnie Craig’s killer sentenced to 124 years in prison. Anchorage Daily News.
https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/article/bonnie-craigs-killer-sentenced-124-years-prison/2011/10/31/

__________________________________________________________________________

If you would like to support Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier? Become a patron and join The Last Frontier Club.
Each month I will provide one or more of the following to club members.
· An extra episode of Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier available only for club members.
· Behind the scenes glimpses of life and wildlife in the Kodiak wilderness.
· Breaking news about ongoing murder cases and new crimes in Alaska
· Merchandise or discounts on MMLF merchandise or handmade glass jewelry
Become a Patron!

___________________________________________________________________________

Check out the store: Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier merchandise.

_________________________________________________________________________

Subscribe to my free, monthly Murder and Mystery Newsletter for more stories about true crime and mystery from Alaska.

Join me on:
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Instagram
Twitter
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Visit my website at http://robinbarefield.com
Check out my books at Author Masterminds

_______________________________________________________________________

Do you enjoy reading? The Reader’s and Writer’s Book Club received a facelift and has a new home. Be sure to take a look.

Readers and Writers Book Club Member Benefits Include:
Save money on books—Fifty Percent Discount.
Access to Author Masterminds author podcasts.
Exclusive, free access to the author’s finest short, timely articles.
Participate in the Battle Of The Books.
Participate in monthly book club meetings.
Participate in raffles and prizes.
Participate in Monthly Book Club Discussion with Authors
Receive new and upcoming book club benefits.

Join the club!

________________________________________________________________________

Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.

 


The Homicidal Trooper



John Patrick Addis

Most of us like to believe we can trust the police, but not everyone goes into law enforcement for the greater good. Some enter the police academy because they crave power over others and what better job than policing offers this power? I believe most police officers are good, and a few are bullies. John Patrick Addis, though, was the worst kind of police officer. He was a monster with a badge.

Sources

If you would like to read more about John Patrick Addis and his downward spiral from a respected Alaska State Trooper to a murderous felon, I suggest you read Ghost: The True Story of One Man’s Descent into Madness and Murder by Glenn Puit.

Zekan, Karen. 10/19/1998. Remains identified as those of LV woman. Las Vegas Sun.
https://lasvegassun.com/news/1998/oct/19/remains-identified-as-those-of-lv-woman/

Tataboline, Brant. 8/2/2003. Ex-trooper linked to second disappearance
MURDER SUSPECTED: One more girlfriend missing; first was found dead in Southwest. Anchorage Daily News.
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/thecyberseekerssociety/ex-trooper-linked-to-second-disappearance-t1049.html

Cervone, Chellie. 2/15/2013. Joann Albenese, Las Vegas woman’s death and disappearance. Las Vegas World News.
http://www.lasvegasworldnews.com/joann-albanese-las-vegas-womans-death-and-disapperance/12605/

___________________________________________________________________________
If you would like to support Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier? Become a patron and join The Last Frontier Club.
Each month I will provide one or more of the following to club members.
· An extra episode of Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier available only for club members.
· Behind the scenes glimpses of life and wildlife in the Kodiak wilderness.
· Breaking news about ongoing murder cases and new crimes in Alaska
· Merchandise or discounts on MMLF merchandise or handmade glass jewelry
Become a Patron!
____________________________________________________________________________
Check out the store: Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier merchandise.

___________________________________________________________________________
Subscribe to my free, monthly Murder and Mystery Newsletter.
Join me on:
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter
LinkedIn
Visit my website at http://robinbarefield.com
Check out my books at Author Masterminds

______________________________________________________________________

Do you enjoy reading? The Reader’s and Writer’s Book Club received a facelift and has a new home. Be sure to take a look.

Readers and Writers Book Club Member Benefits Include:
Save money on books—Fifty Percent Discount.
Access to Author Masterminds author podcasts.
Exclusive, free access to the author’s finest short, timely articles.
Participate in the Battle Of The Books.
Participate in monthly book club meetings.
Participate in raffles and prizes.
Participate in Monthly Book Club Discussion with Authors
Receive new and upcoming book club benefits.
Join the club!

_______________________________________________________________________

Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.

 


The Search for Bethany



Talkeetna, Alaska, is considered the gateway to Mt. Denali (McKinley), the highest mountain in North America. In the summer, tourists, including mountain climbers, hikers, flight-seers, and those who just want to view the majestic mountain, flock to Talkeetna. In the winter, though, the tourists leave, and the 800 residents who remain settle down to quiet lives, watching magnificent displays of the northern lights, playing in the deep snow, raising their children, and gathering for social events to help them forget the cold, dark winter. Talkeetna is a small town where nearly everyone knows everyone else, and when Bethany Correira disappeared, residents immediately responded to search for one of their own.

Billy and Linda Correira moved to Talkeetna in the 1970s. They built a log cabin near a pond and raised two sons and two daughters. Linda home-schooled her kids, taught them to be independent, and told them they could accomplish anything they wanted in life. Bethany, the second oldest child, was sweet and self-sufficient. Before she was twenty years old, Bethany had gone to Nepal as a Christian missionary, sailed in the South Pacific while working as a nanny for a doctor’s family, and worked in base camps with climbers at the base of Mt. Denali. She sewed patches on her favorite backpack from all the places she had traveled. Bethany was athletic, smart, beautiful, and knew how to take care of herself.

Bethany Correira
Glen Klinkhart

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike Lawson (center)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

Klinkhart, Glen. 2014. Finding Bethany. A True Crime Memoir. SecurusMedia.

James, David. 2014. ‘Finding Bethany’ details detective’s quest to solve horrific murder
https://www.adn.com/books/article/finding-bethany-details-detectives-quest-solve-horrific-murder/2014/07/20/

Mystery at Bootlegger’s Cove. Dateline. NBC.
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/24831943/ns/dateline_nbc-crime_reports/t/mystery-bootleggers-cove/#.XwJv8ShKgeE

Johnson, Greg. 2-2008. Lawson draws 99 years. MatSu Valley Frontiersman.
https://www.frontiersman.com/news/lawson-draws-99-years/article_d21b98e0-cace-5983-aeea-f5eea9a06570.html

___________________________________________________________________________
If you would like to support Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier? Become a patron and join The Last Frontier Club.
Each month I will provide one or more of the following to club members.
· An extra episode of Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier available only for club members.
· Behind the scenes glimpses of life and wildlife in the Kodiak wilderness.
· Breaking news about ongoing murder cases and new crimes in Alaska
· Merchandise or discounts on MMLF merchandise or handmade glass jewelry
Become a Patron!

____________________________________________________________________________

Check out the store: Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier merchandise.

 

 

 

___________________________________________________________________________

Subscribe to my free, monthly Murder and Mystery Newsletter.
Join me on:
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter
LinkedIn

Visit my website at http://robinbarefield.com

Check out my books at Author Masterminds

_____________________________________________________________________________

Do you enjoy reading? The Reader’s and Writer’s Book Club received a facelift and has a new home. Be sure to take a look.

Readers and Writers Book Club Member Benefits Includes:
Save money on books—Fifty Percent Discount.
Access to Author Masterminds author podcasts.
Exclusive, free access to the author’s finest short, timely articles.
Participate in the Battle Of The Books.
Participate in monthly book club meetings.
Participate in raffles and prizes.
Participate in Monthly Book Club Discussion with Authors
Receive new and upcoming book club benefits.

Join the club!

 

____________________________________________________________________________

Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.


Dangerous Trails



Most people understand they face the risk of encountering wild animals when they enter the woods in Alaska. What people do not expect is to be shot and killed while hiking on a remote trail, so when a series of murders occurred in parks and on trails near Anchorage in the summer of 2016, residents demanded more information from the police. Were the murders related to each other, was a serial killer stalking the city, was it safe to go hiking after dark, and what were the police doing to solve these murders? Police remained tight-lipped, and tensions rose.

Colt Python

 

Jame Dale Ritchie

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

Hopkins, Kyle. Dec. 30, 2016. TIMELINE: The life of accused killer James Dale Ritchie. KTUU News.
https://www.ktuu.com/content/news/TIMELINE-The-life-of-accused-killer-James-Dale-Ritchie-408889305.html

Hopkins, Kyle. April 26, 2017. Serial killer: Police say James Dale Ritchie committed 5 murders in 2016. KTUU News https://www.ktuu.com/content/news/Serial-killer-Police-say-James-Dale-Ritchie-committed-5-murders-in-2016-420514763.html

James D. Ritchie. Murderpedia. https://murderpedia.org/male.R/r/ritchie-james.htm

James Dale Ritchie: A Serial Killer Caught By Chance. The Lineup. https://the-line-up.com/james-dale-ritchie-a-serial-killer-caught-by-chance

____________________________________________________________________________

If you would like to support Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier? Become a patron and join The Last Frontier Club.

Each month I will provide one or more of the following to club members.

· An extra episode of Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier available only for club members.
· Behind the scenes glimpses of life and wildlife in the Kodiak wilderness.
· Breaking news about ongoing murder cases and new crimes in Alaska
· Merchandise or discounts on MMLF merchandise or handmade glass jewelry

Become a Patron!

___________________________________________________________________

Check out the store: Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier merchandise.

 

 

 

___________________________________________________________________________
Subscribe to my free, monthly Murder and Mystery Newsletter.

Join me on:
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Instagram
Twitter
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Visit my website at http://robinbarefield.com

___________________________________________________________________________

Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.

 


The Chulitna Charmer



Paul Stavenjord

People move to the Alaska wilderness either because they enjoy solitude and crave a subsistence lifestyle or because they wish to escape society. People who fall into this second category are either misfits who don’t know how or don’t want to blend in with others, or they are criminals, seeking to escape arrest and hoping to disappear into the vast wilderness. Many of my episodes have dealt with individuals who ran to Alaska from a life of crime elsewhere. They might have hoped to turn their lives around but instead, most brought their problems and psychopathic tendencies with them.

Until Memorial Day weekend in 1997, Paul Stavenjord seemed to have succeeded at escaping his criminal past, but then something in him snapped, leaving two people dead and forever altering the course of Stavenjord’s life.

Sources:

Ice Cold Killers. Season 1, Episode 3. Mountain Man

Brennan, Tom. 2003. The Bank Robber Next Door. Murder at 40 Below. Epicenter Press

Stavenjord V. State: Available at: https://caselaw.findlaw.com/ak-court-of-appeals/1436854.html

Convicted murderer’s appeal denied. Available at: https://www.frontiersman.com/news/convicted-murderer-s-appeal-denied/article_036c56da-e079-5f2d-b30f-692794ae1d34.html

______________________________________________________________________

Subscribe to Murder and Mystery Newsletter with links to all my podcast episodes.

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Just Released: Karluk Bones

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________________________________________________________________________
Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.

 


Bizarre Murder of a Floatplane Pilot



Anchorage, Alaska is the small plane capital of the world, and flying in Alaska is a thrilling experience where you can view spectacular scenery and reach remote lakes, rivers, and stretches of wilderness that are inaccessible by road. For the commercial pilots who fly these small planes, though, the job can be stressful at times, and they must depend on their skills and common sense. Every year, small plane crashes make the news in Alaska, and sadly, I have known too many pilots who have been injured or killed in crashes. Pilots know their jobs can be dangerous, and commercial pilots are sometimes pressured by their passengers or bosses to fly in marginal weather conditions. The weather might be beautiful in the morning when the pilot leaves base, but he knows conditions can change quickly and weather patterns often vary from one mountain pass to the next. Commercial pilots in Alaska have a tough job, but near the bottom of a pilot’s list of concerns is the fear he will be murdered on the job. After all, who would want to kill his pilot?

I imagine when pilot Robert Feather headed to work at JayHawk Air on the morning of May 15th, 1993, he did not consider he might be murdered by one of his passengers. Maybe he worried about weather conditions or perhaps he was concerned about a strange noise he heard in the plane’s engine the previous day, but murder would not have crossed his mind. Later that afternoon, when a passenger fired a single shot at him, Robert Feather did not have time to think about anything. Within seconds, bullet fragments hit him in the head and killed him.

Sources:

ORDER GRANTING IN PART AND DENYING IN PART MOTION FOR PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT GRANTING IN PART AND DENYING IN PART MOTION FOR CROSS SUMMARY JUDGMENT. Available at: https://www.acluak.org/sites/default/files/field_documents/duryea_v._alaska_decision.pdf

Duryea v. State November 17, 1999, WILLIAM E. DURYEA, APPELLANT, v. STATE OF ALASKA, APPELLEE. Available at: http://ak.findacase.com/research/wfrmDocViewer.aspx/xq/fac.19991117_0042378.AK.htm/qx

_______________________________________________________________________________

Subscribe to Murder and Mystery Newsletter with links to all my podcast episodes.

Just Released: Karluk Bones

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 Robin Barefield is the author of four Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, and Karluk Bones. Sign up to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.