Man shot by Anchorage police after fatal downtown shooting remains hospitalized

An Anchorage man shot and wounded by police after a fatal shooting June 1 outside a downtown bar remained hospitalized this week as his criminal case got underway.

Prosecutors say 22-year-old Kaleb Bourdukofsky shot and killed 25-year-old Diego Joe and injured another man after a fight behind the Pioneer Bar. Police have said two officers shot Bourdukofsky in the upper and lower body less than a block away.

Bourdukofsky was unable to appear for multiple court appearances last week because he was still hospitalized or had been scheduled for surgery, attorneys said during those hearings. He appeared by telephone from the hospital during an initial court appearance Tuesday, answering only to tell Anchorage Superior Court Andrew Peterson that he could hear the proceedings.

Bourdukofsky’s attorney entered a not guilty plea on his behalf Tuesday.

Bourdukofsky was indicted June 7 on charges of first- and second-degree murder, second-degree assault, 11 counts of third-degree assault and one charge of misconduct involving weapons. The third-degree assault charges reflect the number of people at risk of harm in the parking lot where Bourdukofsky fired at least 10 shots into the crowd of 11 people, prosecutor Whitney Bostick said Tuesday.

The shooting was captured on surveillance video, which Peterson said he’d viewed at least partially.

The judge described seeing a man on video, later identified by police as Bourdukofsky, shooting while standing near the driver’s side of an SUV, striking Joe and another man, then walking to the front of the vehicle and continuing to shoot.

He was “continuing to fire rounds while standing over (Joe), then continuing to fire as he walks away,” Peterson said. “... Frankly, I’ve never seen anything quite like this.”

Police have said officers were already patrolling the area at the time because bars were about to let out for the night. Officers responded after hearing gunfire and were told by witnesses that Bourdukofsky was the shooter, they said.

Police said he ran from the area with a gun in his hand while ignoring officers’ orders to stop and was shot and wounded nearby by officers Jordan Varak and Parker Boydston. Bourdukofsky was in stable condition immediately after the shooting, they said.

A crowd of people sat in the gallery to support Joe’s family on Tuesday. His mother told Peterson she believes Bourdukofsky is dangerous and she would be worried for the community’s safety if he were to be released from custody.

Peterson set Bourdukofsky’s bail at $750,000 with additional requirements, including a third-party custodian to monitor him at all times if he is released from custody.

It wasn’t clear when he might be released from the hospital.

Bourdukofsky was the second of three men to be shot by Anchorage police during a three-week period. The other two shootings left Kristopher Handy and Tyler May dead and have sparked calls for police to release body camera footage of the encounters. Police have so far declined to release footage from any of the three shootings, citing ongoing investigations.