Mountain Village VPO charged with evidence tampering in homicide case

Nearly a month after the shooting death of Mountain Village resident Coy Bryan, 18, and the arrest of a 16-year-old suspect, a Village Police Officer has been arrested and charged with evidence tampering, theft, and official misconduct in connection with the homicide.

According to Alaska State Troopers, Mountain Village Police Officer John Hunter, 22, was arrested by Alaska Bureau of Investigation agents Thursday after a follow-up investigation found evidence of alleged criminal activity by Hunter related to the aftermath of the murder of Bryan.

Hunter's relationship to the suspect is unclear. He is being held at the Yukon-Kuskokwim Correctional Center in Bethel on $2,000 bail.

A 16-year-old has been charged in the shooting death of an 18-year-old Mountain Village resident.

Just before 4:00 p.m. Tuesday, April 24, Troopers received a report of a death in the western Alaska city of Mountain Village after Coy Bryan, 18, was found dead in his home by a family member.

Bryan's body was taken to the State Medical Examiner's office in Anchorage for autopsy, which determined the manner of death to be homicide.

According to AST, troopers developed information that a 16-year-old Mountain Village resident shot and killed Bryan inside Bryan's residence.

On April 29, after an interview with investigators, the 16-year-old suspect was arrested and charged with 1st degree murder.

The suspect's bail was set at $750,000 plus a third party custodian. He is currently being held in Bethel.