An Eagle River resident fatally shot another man Tuesday and held eight others at gunpoint at an apartment outside Wasilla, according to charging documents filed in the case.
Mathew Sanchez, 35, was spending time with several friends throughout most of Tuesday at one of the friends’ apartments, according to a sworn affidavit written by Alaska State Troopers Investigator Jason Fieser. Around 11:30 p.m., Sanchez started acting strangely, the affidavit said.
“Witnesses thought Sanchez took a hit of methamphetamine,” the investigator wrote. “Sanchez then produced a gun while he was talking to himself in the bathroom.”
One of the friends went to get 40-year-old Matthew Lundy for help, the affidavit said. While Lundy was putting on body armor in another room, Sanchez walked in and fired a single shot at Lundy’s unprotected side, the affidavit said.
He then pointed the pistol at two other friends, according to the affidavit.
When police arrived at the apartment, Sanchez stepped outside with the pistol still in hand, according to the affidavit. He complied with law enforcement commands and was arrested, the affidavit said.
“Sanchez made excited utterances that he shot Lundy,” Fieser wrote.
Sanchez is facing a first-degree murder charge, two counts of third-degree assault and a charge of misconduct involving a weapon because he is prohibited from owning a gun due to previous felony convictions.
At the time of the shooting, Sanchez was on probation for a controlled substance crime, burglary and assault convictions that date back to 2009.
Sanchez is being held at the Mat-Su Pretrial Facility on $750,000 bail.