A man is behind bars after grabbing an 11-year-old boy away from his mother Thursday in downtown Anchorage, holding the boy at knife point until good Samaritans fought off the attacker, police say.
Raymond Charles Katchatag, 27, is charged with kidnapping, robbery and assault. The boy and three men who came to his rescue suffered minor injuries, including cuts to the boy and one of the men, according to a charging document filed in court Friday.
Katchatag demanded the woman's bags about 4:50 p.m. Thursday inside a sky bridge over Sixth Avenue, a police spokeswoman said in a written statement Friday. The mother had been shopping inside a store at the 5th Avenue mall when Katchatag snatched the boy, put a knife to his throat and said he would kill the boy if the woman did not "give him all her stuff," the charges say.
Three bystanders in the area wrestled Katchatag to the ground, according to the charges. One was cut on his hand, another was scraped in the scuffle and the third strained a shoulder, the charges say.
"The juvenile... suffered a slight injury on his neck where Katchatag held the knife to his throat and a cut to his index finger...," the charges say. "After being restrained by mall security, Katchatag asked if he had killed the 11-year-old and stated that he had killed before."
Katchatag's criminal history includes two convictions for felony theft charges and 10 misdemeanor convictions on charges of vehicle tampering.
Appearing in court Friday at the Anchorage Jail, Katchatag smiled to other inmates and answered a judge's questions about his finances.
"I've been out of jail about a week. In that time I've made about 600 bucks," he said.
"Do you have any money in the bank?" asked Judge Jo-Ann Chung.
"No, I don't trust the banks," Katchatag said.
Chung appointed a public defender to represent Katchatag and set his bail at $60,000, including a $10,000 bond that can only be paid by cash.
Reach Casey Grove at casey.grove@ adn.com or 257-4589.
By CASEY GROVE
Anchorage Daily News / adn.com