Police identify Seward officer – at first mistakenly – involved in fatal shooting during traffic stop

The Seward officer involved in Sunday's fatal shooting during a traffic stop was identified Wednesday by police as Matthew "Eddie" Armstrong.

During the traffic stop, a man from Chugiak, Micah McComas, was shot and later died. Authorities haven't said who shot him or how a traffic stop turned deadly.

"I have no further information to provide regarding the case. The investigation is ongoing," Alaska State Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters said in an email.

Police turned over video from body and vehicle cameras to troopers, the man's sister, Krista Smith of South Carolina, said she was told by Seward Police Chief Tom Clemons.

Police initially gave the officer's name as "Matthew Eddy."

There is no certified police officer by that name in Alaska, according to the Alaska Police Standards Council.

Both the original incorrect name and the corrected version were released by troopers, who are leading the investigation into the shooting. Troopers said that they were just passing on information from Seward police.

The policeman who made the traffic stop early Sunday in Seward gave his name as Officer Armstrong, according to Amy Campbell, the companion of the man killed.

Related: [Man had been handcuffed before he was fatally shot during Seward traffic stop, companion says]

Clemons didn't return calls about how the name discrepancy occurred or any video footage.

Smith, whose family has hired a lawyer, said they need to see the video to understand what happened. Campbell said that McComas had been handcuffed before he was shot but authorities have not confirmed that.

"We don't even know how to grieve properly. Because if my brother did something to warrant it, it is a different type of grief," Smith said. But if he was shot in handcuffs and didn't escalate the situation, "it's a super different type of grief. And anger."

The police chief told her the video evidence was turned over to troopers, and she hasn't been able to see it, she said.

The shooting happened early Sunday in the parking lot of the Seward Safeway. Employees outside on break reportedly witnessed it, Smith said she was told.

Eddie Armstrong — as he is listed on the Seward police website — has a 13-year tenure on the force. In 2014, he was recognized with the department's "Traffic Stop of the Year Award."

Armstrong's career in law enforcement began in 1995, when he was active-duty military, the department said. He then worked as a civilian police officer for the military and in private security for cruise ship operations before joining the Seward department.

During his time on the force, he deployed to Afghanistan with the Alaska Army National Guard and returned in December 2012, according to his profile.

The names of law enforcement officers involved in shootings typically are withheld by authorities for three days under department policies, as was done in this case.