A 29-year-old man who Anchorage police were seeking for questioning in connection with a fatal East Anchorage shooting is no longer considered a "person of interest" in the case, police said Saturday.
Anchorage Police Department spokeswoman Jennifer Castro said police made contact with Derrick Hall on Friday in Las Vegas, Nevada, and were able to interview him. Hall came forward "immediately" once he learned Anchorage police were looking for him, and authorities in Las Vegas helped verify his identity, Castro said.
"He was cooperative in working with us," Castro said.
Police were seeking Hall as part of a larger investigation unfolding around the fatal shooting reported at the 4000 block of Reka Drive shortly after 2 p.m. Thursday. Christopher Fulton Jr., 22, was declared dead at the scene.
About five hours later, police sent out a public advisory with Hall's photo identifying him as a "person of interest," saying he "may have been involved" in the shooting. The advisory also said Hall was last seen hitchhiking Thursday on the Glenn Highway near Eklutna with a woman. But Castro could not immediately say whether that was indeed Hall, since he was located in Las Vegas on Friday.
A "person of interest" in a criminal case is not a suspect, but someone who may have information or knowledge that could aid in the investigation. Those people emerge in the course of speaking to witnesses and gathering evidence, Castro said.
In this case, police were simply unable to locate Hall, Castro said. She said police exhausted other avenues before putting out a public message asking for help tracking him down.
As soon as Hall heard Anchorage police were looking for him, he "came forward immediately," Castro said. She declined to discuss Hall's connection to the case or why police were interested in speaking to him.
"We were able to ... ask the questions we needed to ask, get the info we needed to get. That's why he's no longer considered a person of interest," Castro said.
Castro said police do try to be considerate of a person's right to privacy, but in this case, detectives "felt like they needed to reach out to him to get some information."
"We don't want to create any more problems or stigma for Mr. Hall," Castro said. "He was very cooperative with police and helpful in this matter."
Meanwhile, police have yet to identify a suspect or make any arrests in connection with the case. Castro said detectives were working over the weekend to piece together evidence.