Douglas William Stroble, 25, was shot and killed by law enforcement late Saturday after he held a woman and three children hostage inside a Wasilla home, Alaska State Troopers wrote in an online statement.
Around 8:45 p.m., dispatchers received a call about a hit-and-run crash near the intersection of Church Road and the Parks Highway in Wasilla, troopers wrote. Earlier in the night, Wasilla police officers had received multiple calls about a dangerous driver in the same vehicle. Troopers did not say if anyone was injured in the hit-and-run.
The vehicle was found near Glenkerry Drive, but troopers said the driver was not inside.
A caller at a home nearby reported that just after 9 p.m. a man with a shotgun was on their porch and demanding their keys, troopers wrote. The residents made their way to the garage and left in their vehicle as the man, later identified as Stroble, broke into their home, troopers wrote.
Stroble then headed to another home that was occupied by a woman and three children, according to troopers.
“The suspect, still in possession of the shotgun, separated the adult from the children while telling the female he was going to kill the children,” troopers wrote.
The Wasilla police called for assistance from the troopers’ Special Emergency Response Team. For more than an hour, the team tried to negotiate with Stroble and get him to surrender, according to troopers. It was not immediately clear how officers were alerted that Stroble had gone to the second home.
Just before 11 p.m., troopers entered the house, the statement said. Stroble was still armed and Wasilla police officers and troopers shot and killed him, the statement said. Troopers said the woman and children were not injured. No officers were injured during the incident.
“The use of controlled substances by the suspect is believed to be a contributing factor” in the incident, troopers wrote.
The names of involved officers will be released within 72 hours, troopers said. The Alaska Bureau of Investigation is handling the case, troopers said.