Hunt continues for suspect in shooting of Alaska state trooper in Anchor Point

Update: This story has been updated with a new article, Anchor Point man charged with attempted murder in shooting that wounded a trooper.

Original story:

An Alaska State Trooper was shot in Anchor Point on Monday afternoon, and a search for a man connected to the incident is ongoing, troopers said.

Kenai Peninsula Borough officials in a Facebook post Monday evening asked people living in the area of Mile 156.5 of the Sterling Highway to stay sheltered in place and avoid the response area.

The trooper was shot around 1 p.m. and was receiving medical care, troopers said in a statement just after 2 p.m.

The trooper was medically evacuated to a hospital in Anchorage and was in fair condition on Monday, according to a 5 p.m. update from troopers.

Troopers are searching for 60-year-old Bret Herrick of Anchor Point in connection to the shooting, the statement said.

“If you see Herrick or have information about his current location, do not approach him and call 911 immediately,” troopers wrote. “Herrick is considered armed and dangerous.”

In its 6 p.m. Facebook update, the Kenai Peninsula Borough said “the incident is expected to go into the night.”

Herrick was last seen wearing work boots, dark pants, a knee-length leather trench coat, a black t-shirt and a black do-rag, according to troopers. Herrick is 5′10′', weighs 200 pounds, is bald and has brown eyes, troopers wrote.

Law enforcement is asking people not to pick up hitchhikers near Anchor Point, troopers said in the online statement.

Troopers are asking the public to avoid the Anchor Point area, on the Kenai Peninsula, as the search continues.

Chapman School in Anchor Point was in a “stay put” mode around 3 p.m. Monday, the Kenai Peninsula School District said in a Facebook post, and the district was working with law enforcement.

By 6:20 p.m., all students had been released safely to their parents, said school spokesperson Pegge Erkeneff.

That night, the district announced they would delay the start of school at Chapman by two hours Tuesday morning. If Herrick is not apprehended by 6 a.m., district officials said they would close the school for the day.

Morning bus service from Anchor Point to Homer schools was also suspended.

At 2:52 p.m., the Kenai Peninsula Borough said in a Facebook post that both lanes of the Sterling Highway were open but that access to the side roads off of the highway near Mile 156.5 was limited.