A 45-year-old man who was with a 14-year-old girl the night before she was found dead near an East Anchorage church over the weekend is now accused of sexually abusing her, Anchorage police said Tuesday.
Stewart Emery Jr., appeared in court at the Anchorage Correctional Complex Tuesday on a charge of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor.
Emery was with Megan Sophie Johnson before she was found dead in an alcove near the front door of Muldoon Road Baptist Church on Sunday afternoon with no "obvious signs of trauma" according to a police affidavit filed Tuesday.
The affidavit describes the last evening of Johnson's life as told to Anchorage Police Department officers who interviewed Emery and her 15-year-old boyfriend, who were with Johnson the night before she died.
According to the affidavit, the boy told officers he had met Johnson near the Cabin Tavern on Muldoon Road Saturday night and that she appeared to be intoxicated. The two then went to the nearby church and met Emery, an acquaintance of the boy and registered sex offender, who told police he had alcohol that he shared with the two.
According to the affidavit, at some point the boy left Johnson and Emery alone and the two had sex, which Emery said he believed was consensual. Following the interaction, Emery told police he went to sleep and woke the next morning to attend the church service. When he came back out, he said, he couldn't hear Johnson breathing and he said he began "freaking out" because he had provided the girl with alcohol, the affidavit said.
Emery told investigators he believed Johnson also had sex with her boyfriend the night before she died, but the boyfriend "adamantly denied" it, according to the affidavit.
Alcohol is believed to have been a factor in the case, Anchorage police said in a statement, but the exact cause of death won't be determined until toxicology results are in, which is expected to take about eight weeks.
The affidavit also notes that a Sexual Assault Response Team nurse attended the autopsy and conducted an exam, where some signs of injuries were noted. The medical examiner noted in the affidavit that the autopsy revealed no obvious cause of death.
A public defender was appointed for Emery, who said in court Tuesday that he made no money in the previous 12 months aside from his Alaska Native corporation shareholder dividends. A pre-indictment hearing was scheduled for Thursday.