Aniak man who was killed after shooting deputy U.S. marshal had earlier pointed rifle at others in village, according to charges

Feb. 8—A U.S. Marshals Service task force was serving an arrest warrant to an Aniak man for a charge of third-degree assault on Friday afternoon when gunfire broke out — leaving one deputy wounded and the man dead, Alaska State Troopers said.

About a week earlier, 34-year-old Andrew John Jr. had pointed a rifle at two men when they arrived at his Aniak house on Jan. 29 for a cigarette, according to an affidavit signed by Trooper Jason Bohac. John was not allowed to have a weapon as a condition of his probation from a 2017 conviction for third-degree assault and refusal to submit to a chemical test, the affidavit said.

Bohac wrote in the affidavit that when he spoke to John on the phone, John seemed intoxicated, yelled at him and called him names. Troopers decided it was best to let John "cool off before contact" based on previous encounters and because they knew no one else was in the home with John, according to the affidavit.

Bohac filed a request for an arrest warrant, which was issued by Aniak Court on Jan. 31.

Troopers determined that serving the $2,500 arrest warrant posed a high risk and requested assistance from the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force, according to an online statement from troopers. Communications director Austin McDaniel said by email Monday that troopers "consistently partner with the United States Marshals Service to locate and apprehend fugitives across the state."

Troopers did not say specifically why John was considered to be a high risk. McDaniel said "there are a number of factors that the Alaska State Troopers take into account when determining the risk associated with a warrant service including the suspect's criminal history, the nature of previous contact the suspect had with law enforcement, information about the location, and information about other persons potentially at the location." John had a number of previous convictions including assault and resisting arrest.

The task force was clearing John's home around 1 p.m. Friday when he fired at the team, striking and wounding a deputy U.S. marshal, troopers wrote. The injured deputy was evacuated and the team set up a perimeter around the home, the statement said.

"A short time later, John emerged from his home armed with a loaded shotgun," troopers said. "In response to the threat, multiple members of the task force fired their weapons fatally striking John."

John died at the scene. Troopers have not provided further information about the number of task force members who fired their guns at John and McDaniel said that they will not be identified per U.S. Marshals Service policy.

The deputy U.S. marshal was taken to the Aniak clinic and then flown to an Anchorage hospital and was in fair condition by Saturday, troopers said. He or she had been released from the hospital by Monday, McDaniel said.

No one else was injured and John was alone in the home when the shooting began, said troopers spokesman Tim DeSpain.

The investigation is being handled by the troopers' Bureau of Investigation and will eventually be independently reviewed by the Office of Special Prosecutions.