Federal law-enforcement officers arrested a North Pole man Tuesday on weapons and assault charges for what investigators say was a botched attempt to rob a drug dealer back in December.
Officers with a U.S. Marshals Violent Offender Task Force and the Fairbanks Area Narcotics Team arrested 24-year-old Brandon Laszloffy Tuesday in North Pole for several outstanding state warrants stemming from an attempted robbery of an alleged heroin dealer. Laszloffy was taken to Fairbanks Correctional Center and charged with weapons misconduct and attempted assault charges for his role in the robbery that occurred more than two months ago, according to Randy Coyne, a supervisory deputy U.S. Marshal.
“The incident occurred December the 9th, in the early morning hours,” Coyne said.
That’s when Laszloffy and two passengers drove to the Birch Hill Cemetery to meet another man under the guise of buying some heroin. But investigators say Laszloffy and one of his two passengers, 23-year-old Gabrielle Titus, of Fairbanks, actually intended to rob the man, identified as 52-year-old Gabrielle Titus, of Fairbanks.
But Fairbanks Police say it didn’t go down that way. They say Brown pulled a gun and opened fire, wounding Laszloffy and Titus. The other passenger wasn’t hurt. Investigators didn’t identify her, because she hadn’t been charged.
That person then drove Laszloffy and Titus back into town, but on the way their vehicle was rammed by another while they were southbound on a stretch of the Old Steese Highway just south of the Johansen Expressway. That’s where Fairbanks police found them, in their vehicle, at about 5:45 a.m. Dec. 9, after getting a 911 call about a road-rage incident.
Both Laszloffy and Titus were taken to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital, where they were treated and released.
Alaska State Troopers later located Brown and arrested him on two counts of first-degree assault and misconduct charges for weapons and controlled substances. Titus also was arrested and charged with robbery, evidence tampering and weapons misconduct.
Coyne says police turned to the Marshals Service and Fairbanks Area Narcotics Team to bring in Laszloffy.
“Fairbanks Police Department determined that Laszloffy was involved in the robbery, and sought warrants for his arrest,” he said. “So, we went out and located him, and got him into custody.”
During Laszloffy’s initial appearance Wednesday, a judge set bail at a half-million dollars.
