Alaska State Troopers say a Dillingham man arrested in the shooting deaths of two residents Saturday left a distinctive weapon at the scene, though charges filed this week provided little additional information about the circumstances leading up to the killings.
Jennifer Gardiner, 32, and Timothy Evans, 31, were found dead inside a home near Dillingham’s airport on Saturday morning, troopers said.
Joshua Wahl, 31, called police to report their deaths, according to a sworn affidavit written by troopers Investigator Eric Pavil. Police and troopers responded to the scene and found Evans and Gardiner been fatally shot, the affidavit said. Inside the home, investigators found a green and black 9 mm handgun with the word “absolution” carved into it, Pavil wrote.
Wahl had posted a video online showing the same gun and investigators found a photo of the gun and of Wahl posted by the same person on 4chan, a controversial unmoderated website, the affidavit said.
Troopers said they arrested Wahl on charges of first- and second-degree murder on Sunday night.
Dillingham is roughly 330 miles southwest of Anchorage.
Wahl told investigators he returned to the home to pick up his belongings on Saturday morning, the affidavit said. It wasn’t clear from the criminal complaint filed with charges whether Wahl lived at the home, what his relationship with Evans and Gardiner was, or what may have motivated the shooting.
About 45 minutes before Wahl called police, officers contacted him and another person at a liquor store for a verbal dispute, the affidavit said. The other person was not one of the shooting victims. Wahl was wearing different clothing when officers spoke with him after the shootings, it said.
Wahl is facing two counts each of first- and second-degree murder and remained in custody Thursday afternoon at the Anchorage Correctional Complex. His attorney, Rex Butler, could not immediately be reached for comment Thursday.