The same grand jury also indicted 21-year-old Chandler Coonradt for felony assault in the third degree last month, after he allegedly threatened a woman with a weapon while intoxicated. Police say video evidence provided by the person reporting the abuse showed that Coonradt pointed a gun at the victim and threatened to shoot her. A hearing in Coonradt’s case is scheduled mid-May. 

The same grand jury also indicted 30-year-old Keith Nelson Jr. on two felony counts of tampering with physical evidence. Nelson is in custody at Lemon Creek Correctional Center awaiting trial for charges stemming from a grocery store robbery in 2025. He was charged with evidence tampering after he allegedly attempted to alter the results of a urinalysis drug test while in police custody. 

A grand jury also indicted a Sitkan in a similar, but unrelated, evidence tampering case. According to court documents, on January 26, 30-year-old Vaughn Dalton allegedly smuggled a bottle of urine into the Sitka jail house and attempted to use it to evade drug testing. Police say a subsequent drug tested positive for methamphetamine and amphetamines. On February 9, a grand jury indicted Dalton on two felony counts of tampering with evidence, and one count of violating conditions of release. Dalton is currently in custody at Lemon Creek Correctional Center. A trial in his case is tentatively scheduled for late April.

Also in February, 47-year-old Kelly Worley was arrested after threatening to harm a staff member at a local nonprofit, and damaging several cars parked nearby. On February 19, a grand jury indicted Kelly Worley on one felony count of criminal mischief, and one misdemeanor assault charge. The next hearing in Worley’s case is scheduled for mid-April.

KCAW has reached out to attorneys representing all of the defendants for comment.

Editor’s Note: KCAW previously reported on a sixth indictment in February in connection with a deadly boating accident that killed two Sitka teenagers in 2024. Read more about that here. Additionally, KCAW omits some details when reporting domestic violence cases to protect the identities of survivors and children involved.

Police located Ledbetter near the downtown roundabout and took him into custody. Upon referencing his criminal record, they found that Ledbetter had two assault convictions in Sitka in the past decade and was out of compliance on the sex offender registry. 

On December 4, Ledbetter was indicted on one count of assault in the third degree. 

Later in the winter, just before 11 p.m. on January 8, police responded to a burglary in progress at a trailer home on Halibut Point Road. The caller said she had received a motion alert from a security camera on her property, and believed someone had entered her home. She said the camera captured footage of a man entering one of the home’s bedrooms wearing a hoodie with the word “Wolverine.” Police arrived at her home and found a single set of footprints in the snow that circled the trailer, stopping at every door and window. 

As police were investigating, an officer spotted 25-year-old Scott Roe between the home and a neighboring trailer, wearing a hoodie that matched the caller’s description. Police say despite initially denying the burglary, Roe ultimately admitted to entering the home and stealing three pairs of women’s underwear. A week later (Jan 15) a grand jury indicted Roe on one count of felony burglary in the first degree. 

It wasn’t the only late-night call police responded to in January. On January 13, shortly before 3 a.m., a 911 caller told police that 24-year-old Angelei Young was standing outside his bedroom window. He said Young punched the window until it broke, sustaining an injury to her wrist.

Police arrived at the home on Spruce Street, and found Young walking away from the scene. According to court documents, officer John Waldron told her to stop walking two times. At that point, police say Young turned around, ran toward Waldron and tackled him to the ground, attempting to hit Waldron and other people at the scene. Waldron was able to handcuff Young, and after seeing she was bleeding from her right hand, called an ambulance. In the scuffle, Waldron also suffered injuries to his hand and elbow.

On January 15, Young was indicted on two felony counts of criminal mischief in the third degree. 

Also this winter, a grand jury indicted 48-year-old Christian Moe on one felony count of attempted sexual abuse of a minor in the first degree, the latest in a series of felony indictments stemming from a 2023 criminal case. Hearings for Ledbetter, Roe and Young are scheduled for February 5. A pre-trial conference in Moe’s case is scheduled for March.  

Also in January, a Juneau judge dismissed some indictments against 19-year-old Pietr Dabaluz. Dabaluz was charged with assaulting two Trump supporters during a protest in downtown Sitka last summer.

On August 30, police said Dabaluz allegedly took an Israeli flag from a pro-Trump protester and hit him with it before engaging in an altercation with another protester, breaking his nose. The incident was captured by a nearby security camera, and police responded to the scene, following multiple 911 calls. In September, Dabaluz was indicted on two felony counts of assault and one count of robbery. 

In an opinion issued in mid-January, Juneau Superior Court Judge Amy Mead found some of the evidence presented to the jury was inadmissible – specifically police testimony that relied entirely on the video surveillance footage. Mead also found there was not enough evidence to support the grand jury’s finding that one of the protesters had suffered a serious physical injury, or that Dabaluz hit the other protester with the flag. Judge Mead granted Dabaluz’s motion for dismissing the assault indictments, but allowed the robbery indictment to stand. 

On September 10, 29-year-old Keith Nelson Jr was arrested after he allegedly stole an item from a local grocery store. According to court documents, shortly after 10 a.m., police received a report of a shoplifter at Market Center in downtown Sitka.

Officer Mitchell Boord responded and located Nelson walking away from the store. According to a sworn police affidavit, Nelson began running down Oja Street, and after a brief pursuit in his patrol vehicle, Boord caught up with Nelson and handcuffed him. Two Market Center employees told Boord that they confronted Nelson after he dropped and broke a bottle of cooking wine, and placed a second bottle in his pocket. Nelson allegedly threatened to hit the employees with the wine bottle before exiting the store.

On September 18, a Sitka grand jury indicted Nelson on one count of robbery, a Class B felony.

Earlier in the month, on September 4, police arrested 61-year-old Vicente Gaspar Carlos after he allegedly broke into a former family member’s apartment, and began yelling for a key to access his guns. Officer John Waldron responded and interviewed Carlos in his apartment above the home he’d broken into. According to a sworn police affidavit, Carlos had a large hunting knife on his hip, and Waldron said that after asking Carlos to remain still and allow him to remove the knife multiple times, Waldron took Carlos to the floor and handcuffed him.

On September 11, a grand jury indicted Carlos on two counts of felony burglary, and one count of felony assault.

In August, several Sitkans were indicted for drinking-and-driving, felony assault, and theft charges. On August 13, police arrested 26-year-old Sergio Sanchez after he allegedly hit a rock wall while driving under the influence of alcohol on Sawmill Creek Road. On August 21, a grand jury indicted Sanchez on one felony count of driving under the influence, and a separate felony for refusing to submit to a breathalyzer test.

51-year-old John Clayton Summer was arrested on August 5 after he allegedly assaulted a woman on his boat in ANB harbor. On August 14, a grand jury indicted Summer on three counts of felony assault.

The same grand jury also indicted 38-year-old Eric James Mason on one felony theft charge. That’s after, on June 11, Mason allegedly stole $2,500 dollars out of a vehicle parked in the Eliason Harbor parking lot, then later the same day took a drink from A/C Lakeside without paying for it. Later in August, Mason was indicted on additional theft and criminal trespass charges, both misdemeanors.  

Also in late August, a grand jury indicted 42-year-old Sharlymae Lozada on charges brought forth by the Sitka District Attorney’s office. According to the indictment, the DA alleges that from July 2023 to July 2024, Lozada was engaged in a defrauding scheme. Lozada was indicted on two felony counts of fraud, one count of misdemeanor forgery, one count of falsifying business records, and one count of felony theft for allegedly stealing over $25,000 in the defrauding scheme. KCAW has reached out to the District Attorney’s office for more information on the case. 

As of press time, all of the defendants have trials tentatively scheduled for early November, but those dates are subject to change. 

On November 14, 2024, the grand jury indicted 42-year-old Brandon Ledbetter on one count of felony criminal mischief. According to court documents, Sitka police received a call from the defendant’s biological mother on November 8 stating that her vehicle had been damaged while parked overnight. Upon arrival, police found the vehicle with deep scratch marks and all four tires punctured. The caller showed police text messages from the defendant, which read, “By the way you need new tires, and you might have a few scratches on your passenger side.” Police arrested the defendant and transported him to the Sitka Jail. A trial is scheduled for the week of April 7. (Update 5-28-25: Ledbetter was convicted on a guilty plea on April 11.)

On January 2, the grand jury indicted 47-year-old Georgiana Joseph on three felony counts of criminal mischief, assault, and burglary. According to court documents, troopers received a complaint from an Angoon resident at about 4 a.m. on December 23 that his second cousin, the defendant, was intoxicated and using a log round to break windows at his residence and trying to force entry into his home. Troopers arrived by plane several hours later and found significant damage to the door and windows of the home. Later that day troopers made contact with Joseph, who was sleeping in a van nearby. Joseph admitted to breaking the windows. She was arrested and transported to Lemon Creek Correctional Center. A trial is scheduled for the week of April 28. 

On February 27, 31-year-old Jorge Ruiz-Rivera was indicted on two felony counts of stalking after allegedly attempting to contact someone in violation of a protective order. According to court documents, on February 12 troopers intercepted a letter from Ruiz-Rivera, who is currently an inmate at Lemon Creek Correctional Center, after determining that sending the letter violated an active protective order requiring the defendant to not contact the intended recipient. Troopers made contact with the intended recipient, who continued to express concern for her safety and her family’s safety. A trial is scheduled for the week of April 28.

In a separate indictment on February 27, 20-year-old Ricky Allen was indicted on one count of felony criminal mischief. According to court documents, Wrangell police received a call on February 25 that a snack machine at the Wrangell ferry terminal had been vandalized overnight. When police arrived, they found the machine’s glass shattered and a large rock sitting next to a pile of broken glass. Police reviewed security footage, which showed two people swinging something in front of the machine and then walking into a nearby house. After visiting the house, police made contact with the defendant, who admitted to breaking the machine and stated that he was angry because it took his money and the snack item got stuck in the machine. The owner of the machine stated that about 40 dollars of product was missing from the machine, including 13 KitKats and 10 bags of SunChips. He estimated that replacing the machine would cost more than $5,000. The trial is scheduled for the week of May 5.

Finally, three Sitka residents were indicted on January 24 after a January 16 drug bust that turned into a high-speed car chase from downtown to Sitka High School. Thirty-seven-year-year-old Adam Fondell was indicted on three felony counts of misconduct involving a controlled substance, one felony count of criminal mischief, and two felony counts of assault; 47-year-old Casey Douglas was indicted on one felony count of reckless driving, one felony count of criminal mischief, seven felony counts of assault and one felony count of vehicle theft; and 38-year-old April McLaughlin was indicted on two felony counts of misconduct involving a controlled substance. A trial is scheduled for the week of June 2.

According to a sworn police affidavit, on March 8 shortly after 3 p.m., Officer Parker White attempted to pull over 47-year-old James Glenn Thompson on Sawmill Creek Road. Police say that rather than pulling over, Thompson attempted to evade White, speeding down Smith Street at around 50 miles per hour, nearly hitting another vehicle and a bystander who had to move out of the way to avoid the speeding car. Thompson allegedly continued to speed, running a stop sign, before eventually pulling over. Officers say he then became combative and resisted arrest.

On March 14 a Sitka Grand Jury indicted Thompson on one count of failure to stop at the direction of a peace officer, a Class C felony, one count of resisting arrest and one count of reckless driving, both misdemeanors. 

Thompson is currently in custody at Lemon Creek Correctional Center in Juneau. A trial in Thompson’s case is tentatively scheduled for May. 

Later in the month, on March 18, Sitka Police received a complaint from a local liquor store that a customer had allegedly used a fraudulent $100 bill labeled “For Motion Picture Purposes” to pay for a purchase. Police arrested 35-year-old Joshua Alan Connelly after learning that Connelly attempted to use the bill at another liquor store in town about 20 minutes earlier.

On March 28, Connelly was indicted on one count of forgery in the first degree, a Class B Felony. Connelly is currently in custody at Lemon Creek Correctional Center in Juneau. A trial in his case is tentatively scheduled in June. 

Also on March 28, the same grand jury indicted 39-year-old Tyler Calvin Eells on one count of sexual abuse of a minor in second degree, a Class B felony. And it indicted 35-year old Gilbert Sam Jr. for failure to register as a sex offender, a Class C felony. 

Both Eels and Sam are out of custody, with trial dates tentatively scheduled for the week of June 10. 

30-year-old Jason Svilar was arrested on January 30 by officer Parker White after the owner of a local inn told police she had video of Svilar burglarizing the property. According to court documents, the owner said that Svilar had allegedly stolen a key card and entered the property on at least six occasions to steal food, including a box of donuts, an open bottle of creamer, and two cups of coffee. Svilar was indicted by a Sitka Grand Jury on February 15 for three counts of burglary in the second degree, a Class C felony.

35-year-old Shea Grogan was indicted on February 15 for one count of theft in the first degree and one count of fraudulent use of an access device or identification document, both Class B felonies. According to court documents, Grogan allegedly committed theft of more than $25,000 between November 2019 and February 2022.

Grand juries also indicted two Sitkans on drug charges. 32-year-old Jordan McGraw was indicted in Juneau on February 22 after law enforcement intercepted about 280 suspected fentanyl pills and 20 grams of methamphetamine in a parcel sent from Washington State to Sitka on February 12. Investigators observed McGraw picking up the parcel and subsequently found evidence that McGraw had opened the parcel. McGraw allegedly told officers that he was planning to deliver the parcel to its intended recipient but had first opened it to obtain some of the drugs. McGraw was indicted on two felony counts of misconduct involving a controlled substance.

Finally, 55-year-old Izaak Needham was indicted on February 8 on two counts of misconduct involving a controlled substance and three counts of misconduct involving weapons, all Class C felony charges.

A jury trial for McGraw is scheduled for May of this year; trial dates for all other defendants are pending.

Update: On October 10, 2024, McGraw pleaded guilty to the first felony count of misconduct involving a controlled substance. The second was dismissed by prosecution.

31-year-old Patrick O’Brien was arrested in 2021, after assaulting his father, 63-year old James O’Brien, Jr., in an altercation on Kasiana Island, near Sitka. James O’Brien was medevaced to Seattle where he later died. 

After an agreement with the state was entered in Sitka Superior Court last summer, O’Brien pleaded guilty to one count of murder in the second degree, and assault in the third degree.

At his sentencing hearing in mid-January, O’Brien’s public defender Nathan Lockwood and state prosecutor Amy Fenske both urged the court to accept the plea agreement. At the center of the agreement were issues that would have been explored if the case had gone to trial – questions about O’Brien’s mental health at the time as well as the role self-defense would have played in the case. 

His mother, Tina O’Brien, said she felt her son had been acting in self-defense and thought he should serve less time.

“I think if his dad wasn’t drinking and pulled a gun on him, none of this would have happened,” she told Judge Trevor Stephens.

“I would really like to apologize to my mom for putting her in this situation,” Patrick O’Brien told the judge. “I wish my dad was here to apologize to him. I realize I went too far. I realize it was way blown out of proportion in my head. So I feel really bad that my dad had to pay the consequences,” he said.  

Judge Stephens accepted the state’s plea agreement, and O’Brien was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

In other courthouse news, a Sitka grand jury only indicted one person in January– an Angoon man who was arrested after allegedly threatening to hit another person with a wrench in December. On January 4, 37-year-old Robert Teas was indicted on two counts of assault in the third degree, both Class C felonies.

Police arrested 47-year-old James Thompson on Christmas Eve after he allegedly barricaded himself in his home and told police he had a firearm. Police were attempting to contact Thompson about an open warrant when the situation escalated. Police broke down Thompson’s door, deploying smoke grenades, and arrested Thompson.

On December 28, a Sitka Grand Jury indicted Thompson on two counts of terroristic threatening in the second degree, class C felonies, and a misdemeanor count of assault in the fourth degree. Thompson is in custody at Lemon Creek Correctional facility in Juneau.

The same Grand Jury indicted 22-year-old Benito Joseph Martinez on several assault and criminal mischief charges. Martinez was arrested on December 26, after a neighbor called 911 to report Martinez and the victim screaming in an adjoining apartment. Police arrived at the scene, and after an investigation arrested Martinez. During the arrest, police say Martinez resisted and attempted to flee, and an officer tackled him. The victim was taken to the hospital and treated for injuries.

On December 28, Martinez was indicted on a count each of assault in the second and third degree, both felonies. He was also indicted on one count of misdemeanor assault in the fourth degree, two counts of criminal mischief, one count of interfering with a report of a crime involving domestic violence and one count of resisting or interfering with arrest.  

Both Thompson and Martinez have tentative trial dates scheduled in February. 

Update: Both Thompson and Martinez accepted plea deals. On January 18, 2024, Thompson pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor assault charge. Both counts of terroristic threatening against Thompson were dismissed by the prosecution. On February 28, 2024, Martinez pleaded guilty to assault in the fourth degree, a misdemeanor, and a lesser criminal mischief charge. The remaining felony assault charge against Martinez was dismissed by prosecution.

The Grand Jury alleges that October 5, 33-year-old Zachary Loewen broke into Harbor Mountain Brewery and stole money from the till. Using security footage obtained from a nearby convenience store and the brewery, police say they were able to identify Loewen as he broke into the building, opened the cash register and did “a little ditty dance” before taking the money from the till and leaving.

Then, around 11 p.m. on November 10, police responded to a report that a man had broken into Mt. Edgecumbe Pre-School. Officers arrived at the school, and allegedly found Loewen drinking from a 47 oz. jug of applesauce. 

The Grand Jury indicted Loewen on one count of burglary in the second degree, a felony, and one misdemeanor count of theft in the fourth degree. 

Update: On August 18, 2025, Loewen pleaded guilty to the burglary and theft charges, as well as one count of criminal mischief, a Class A misdemeanor.

Loewen’s arrest at the pre-school wasn’t the only late night call police responded to in November. Shortly before midnight on November 3, Sitka Police responded to reports that a fight had broken out at Ernie’s Bar. Police say after arriving at the bar and breaking up the fight, they arrested 33-year-old Joshua Bivens. According to the allegations, Bivens had assaulted multiple people in the bar, including the manager, when a loaded handgun fell out of his pants.  On November 9, a Sitka Grand Jury indicted Bivens on one count of misconduct involving weapons in the third degree, a class C felony. A trial in Bivens’ case is tentatively scheduled next January. 

Update: On March 27, 2024, as part of a plea agreement, Bivens pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor weapons charges and assault in the fourth degree, also a misdemeanor. The remaining charges were dropped by the prosecution.

In a separate case, the same grand jury on November 9 indicted 46-year-old Christian Moe on one count of sexual abuse and one count of assault. A trial in Moe’s case is tentatively scheduled next February.

Also on November 9, 32-year-old Twila O’Brien and 27-year-old Bradley Ross were each indicted on one count of misconduct involving a controlled substance in the second degree, a Class A felony. The grand jury also indicted 26-year-old Miguel Garcia on two felony counts of misconduct involving a controlled substance. Trials in all three narcotics cases are tentatively scheduled for January of next year. 

Update: On January 27, 2025, O’Brien pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of attempted delivery of a controlled substance, a Class B felony. On August 12, 2024, Ross pleaded guilty to the same amended charge. On September 5, 2024, one drug charge against Garcia was dropped as part of a plea deal, in which he pleaded guilty to one count of misconduct involving a controlled substance in the fourth degree with a previous drug misconduct charge on his record.

And on November 30, the Grand Jury indicted one more Sitkan. 33-year-old James O’Brien was indicted on two counts of misconduct involving a controlled substance. This follows O’Brien’s indictment on a related charge in July, when he was arrested for possession of fentanyl near a school. A trial in O’Brien’s case is tentatively set for January. 

Update: Charges against O’Brien were dropped in this case as part of a plea agreement in another case.

Editor’s Note: KCAW omits certain details in assault and domestic violence cases in order to protect the identities of the victims.

On the evening of August 27, 36-year-old Adam Fondell allegedly kicked in the door of an apartment on Halibut Point Road and assaulted three people. Police responded to several 911 calls about two men fighting in the parking lot of the apartment complex. By the time they arrived, Fondell had fled the scene, and they began searching for him.

About an hour later, Fondell allegedly broke into the apartment again and attempted to assault the people inside, at one point throwing one of the victims against a stove, shattering the glass in the oven door. One of the victims was able to escape from the apartment and call 911. Fondell fled the scene a second time before officers arrived.  All three victims were taken to Mt. Edgecumbe Medical Center for treatment.

Police searched for Fondell throughout the evening and the next morning, issuing a $50,000 warrant for his arrest and publishing a bulletin asking for information on his whereabouts. He turned himself in the next evening. 

A Sitka Grand Jury on October 26 indicted Fondell on 10 charges. Three of them were felonies, including two counts of burglary in the first degree, a Class B felony, and one felony count of criminal mischief. He was also indicted on one misdemeanor count of criminal mischief, five misdemeanor counts of DV related assault in the fourth degree, and one count of stalking in the second degree. 

According to court documents, Fondell is out of custody after posting $30,000 bail. A trial in the case is tentatively scheduled for the first week of January.