Alaska News

Bethel police: Woman found dead in park was stabbed, boyfriend arrested

Bethel police say a woman found dead early Sunday in a city park had been stabbed, and they have arrested her boyfriend on charges of first degree murder.

Witnesses reported a dead body at Pinky's Park Boardwalk at around 4 a.m. on Sunday morning.

Police identified the victim Monday as 23-year-old Eunice Whitman of Bethel.

"Whitman sustained what appeared to be multiple stab wounds although the cause of death will ultimately be determined by the Medical Examiner's Office in Anchorage," Bethel police Lieutenant Joseph Corbett wrote in a press release Monday.

On Sunday night, Bethel police identified a suspect, according to the statement: Whitman's 24-year-old boyfriend Justine Paul, originally from Kipnuk but living in Bethel.

Corbett said that interviews with friends and family led police to identify Paul as a suspect.

"We were out there, talking to people," he said.

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On Sunday night, officers executed a search warrant of Paul's residence and found evidence believed to be linked to the murder, Corbett said.

Paul was interviewed by police and arrested on the murder charges.

He was taken to the Yukon Kuskokwim Correctional Center, where he will be arraigned Tuesday.

Police are still investigating the case and want to talk to potential witnesses. Anyone with information should call the Bethel Police Department at 907-543-3781.

Michelle Theriault Boots

Michelle Theriault Boots is a longtime reporter for the Anchorage Daily News. She focuses on in-depth stories about the intersection of public policy and Alaskans' lives. Before joining the ADN in 2012, she worked at daily newspapers up and down the West Coast and earned a master's degree from the University of Oregon.

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