ALASKA STATE TROOPERS

Monte LaVelle Chitty, age 62, was arrested on April 5 in a small town in Texas by state police and U.S. Marshals, after attempting to flee child-abuse related charges in the Florida Keys. He was arrested in March and charged with two felonies involving a 15-year-old girl from the Baptist church he was leading in Marathon, Florida. Those include sexual battery and lewd and lascivious molestation, and a misdemeanor of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.Chitty was also a former Alaska Village Public Safety Officer in the Aleutian region for several years and a pastor in Cold Bay for a short period. He moved to Alaska and began leading the Cold Bay Chapel in 2010.

The Unalaska City School District was not among the schools that received bomb threats Tuesday. The Aleutians East Borough School District was similarly unaffected.

A crew member on an American Seafoods factory trawler died at sea last week, likely from an ammonia leak on board.

The Alaska State Troopers arrested Christopher Mitchell, a 36-year-old Washington resident, for an outstanding warrant as he was traveling to Sand Point, at which time they say they found nearly $100,000 worth of fentanyl and methamphetamine.

“He was a passionate protector of the fish and game that were so important to him, and all of us," said the local staff of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game in a statement. "Alex was both a colleague and friend to many; we will most remember him for his quiet kindness.”

Former Unalaska resident Alex Arduser passed away while bird hunting near Cordova on April 25, 2023. He was 44 years old and had recently retired from 20 years as an Alaska Wildlife Trooper.

Alaska State Troopers are investigating the death of retired Wildlife Trooper Alex Arduser, 44, who spent several years living and working in Unalaska.

A 2-year-old allegedly killed by his foster parents has been laid to rest on St. Paul Island. The child, Joshua John Rukovishnikoff, was buried on top of his mother’s grave during a memorial service Saturday. Jeremy Philemonoff is from the Pribilof community of about 350 people and used to be married to the toddler’s mother, Nadesda “Lynnette” Rukovishnikoff, who was killed in September 2021. Philemonoff said they laid John to rest right on top of her casket and placed a small cross in front of hers.

A St. Paul toddler who authorities say was killed by his foster parents will be buried beside his mother on the remote Pribilof island. That’s following a ruling by a tribal court last week over a dispute between families about where the 2-year-old boy’s final resting place should be.

Family of a St. Paul Island toddler who authorities say died at the hands of his foster parents last month are at odds over where the boy should be buried. The 2-year-old boy’s parents are not directly involved in the decision; his father is currently facing charges of murdering his mother. The back-to-back murder charges are the first in the remote Pribilof Island community in 15 years.