Charges filed against one of the suspects tied to two fatal shootings last month in Anchorage detail young suspects trying to steal 1 ounce of pot from dealers in the first incident and then attempting to take another quarter-pound in a second incident, and the deadly consequences of those plans.
Anchorage police have charged 19-year-old Makur Chan in both shootings. The charging documents indicate cellphone records and witness interviews led to his arrest.
Chan allegedly shot Jeanpal Borge, 20, once in the forehead using a firearm with a laser sight, the charges say. And he told police he witnessed the shooting that killed Charles Gustav Steinhilpert III, 18.
Chan lacks an Alaska rap sheet, but Anchorage Police Department records show he and Nathaniel Kile Jr., 18, have had "numerous police contacts" together, according to the affidavit of APD Det. John Foraker. Kile is charged with second-degree murder in Borge's death.
Also charged in the shootings are Simon Chuar, 20; Timothy Funches, 19; a 14-year-old boy; and Keirara Reynaud, 18.
Police Chief Mark Mew said during a January press conference called to address the city's rash of shootings that the month's four homicides involved "marijuana and other drugs."
Police say Chan and others planned to pick up pot on the night of Jan. 25 at a Walgreens parking lot despite having no money. Chan snatched 1 ounce of marijuana from another group of teens, the charges say.
The 14-year-old demanded more marijuana from the group -- who according to public records live in South Anchorage -- but Steinhilpert shocked him with a Taser. The 14-year-old allegedly retaliated by shooting Steinhilpert in the chest.
Chan told detectives the group fled the scene. The 14-year-old called police about an hour after the shooting and turned himself in. The charges do not say what happened to the stolen ounce of marijuana. APD Det. Walter Gilmour, one of the investigators, did not return a call for comment.
Four days after the Walgreens shooting, Jeanpal Borge was dead. Police responded to an East Anchorage parking lot and found him with a gunshot wound in the head.
Borge was several yards from a black SUV with its driver's door ajar. Near his body lay a torn plastic shopping bag filled with Ziploc bags containing marijuana, according to the charges.
A witness told police Chan had tried to steal drugs again. He allegedly refused to pay and snatched a quarter-pound of marijuana from Borge. But this time there was a struggle, and Borge exited his vehicle and pulled a gun out.
"Nathaniel Kile told detectives that he ducked down but he was able to see Makur Chan point his pistol with a laser" and fire the fatal shot, the charges say.
Special Assignment Unit officers, who often don SWAT gear and make warrant arrests, picked up Chan on Saturday. Chan was allegedly seen destroying a cellphone before his arrest.
The address listed on Chan's arrest warrant is a green duplex with brown trim off Muldoon Road. A red curtain covered the window near the front door on Wednesday; an empty pack of Newport cigarettes lay in the snow near the porch. No one answered the door.
East Anchorage High School yearbooks for 2011 to 2013 include photos of Chan for his freshman through junior years. As a freshman, the yearbook describes him as "fashionable and outgoing."