2 officers placed on administrative leave after shooting armed man who allegedly made 'suicidal statements'
UPDATED: The state Bureau of Investigation on Sunday identified two Alaska State Trooper recruits who fatally shot a Fairbanks man Thursday after he allegedly charged at one of the officers while armed with a knife. The Troopers also wounded a family member
The Investigation Bureau identified the officers as Trooper Recruit John Faul and Trooper Recruit Wyatt Miller. Both have been placed on administrative leave, as is required by Department of Public Safety policy after an officer-involved shooting.
According a dispatch posted Sunday by the agency, Faul has served as a Trooper for five-and-a-half months, and had three years of prior service in law enforcement. Both officers have been placed on administrative leave, as routinely required by policy, the bureau said.
The dispatch said Wyatt had five-and-a-half months of service as a Trooper.
The shooting occurred after Troopers responded to a report at around 11:30 Thursday morning about a man damaging property at a Fairbanks home.
When the Troopers arrived, they talked with the suspect, 24-year-old William Rexford, an Alaska Native, and his family members to find out what happened, according to Trooper spokesperson Austin McDaniel.
“As we were talking with the family members and Rexford, kind of working to determined what happened, we made the determination he was experiencing some mental health issues,” McDaniel said. “He was also making some suicidal statements to Troopers as they were all calmly speaking together.”
At one point during the conversation, troopers say Rexford abruptly fled the living room, as one of the officers tried to stop him.
“ Without any warning,” McDaniel said, “Rexford jumped up from the couch he was sitting on, ran into a kitchen, armed himself with a kitchen knife, and then charged one of the troopers that was right behind him.”
He said the Trooper sustained a minor cut during the attack.
“ Multiple state Troopers that were in the residence fired their handguns at Rexford,” McDaniel said. “He was fatally shot as a result of that. And then another adult male that was in the residence was also struck by gunfire.”
Troopers then immediately began life-saving efforts on both men until paramedics arrived and pronounced the suspect dead on the scene. Troopers say the other wounded man, who’s a family member of Rexford’s, sustained serious injuries and was taken to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital, where he remained hospitalized as of late Friday..
Rexford’s body was sent to the state medical examiner's office for autopsy.
McDaniel said major-crime investigators with the Alaska Bureau of Investigation were called in to conduct a forensic examination, interview people in the house and collect evidence.
Once their investigation is completed, it’ll be sent over to the state Office of Special Prosecutions, which will independently review the investigation to determine if any criminal charges should be filed against the troopers.
The names of the two troopers who were placed on leave, in accordance with state Department of Public Safety policy, will be released Sunday.