Crime & Courts

APD: Angry parent carried gun into West High before confrontation outside with officers

A man who police say threatened officers with a gun outside West High School in Anchorage Tuesday morning now faces charges of assault and weapons misconduct.

Shortly before 8 a.m., 39-year-old Kalepo Timoteo and an unidentified woman walked into West High and got into a "verbal altercation" with the staff, police said.

Police spokeswoman Jennifer Castro told reporters at the scene that two of Timoteo's sons attend the school. During the confrontation with staff, Timoteo demanded to see his sons before he walked out of the building, police said.

"As the male was leaving the school, it was reported that he was armed with a gun," police said, prompting officers to confront Timoteo outside. Castro said he verbally and physically threatened police in the ensuing exchange.

"During the standoff, the male was at one point pointing the gun in the direction of officers and the female," Castro said. "The officers were able to verbally de-escalate the situation, get the male to surrender (and) take the man into custody."

Castro said Timoteo had the weapon on him throughout the incident.

"Upon investigation, we found that he was armed when he entered the building and he was armed when he left the building," Castro said.

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In an update Tuesday afternoon, APD said Timoteo had been charged with one count of fourth-degree misconduct involving a weapon and three counts of third-degree assault.

Anchorage School District Superintendent Ed Graff praised the performance of West High's two school resource officers, Gary Winborg and Ben Yoon, in a statement Tuesday afternoon.

"Officers Winborg and Yoon did an amazing job this morning," Graff said. "They knew exactly what to do to ensure the safety of our students and staff. I am so grateful for the work of all of our school resource officers and what they do for us every day. Today's incident clearly reinforces how important they are to our schools and community."

Nobody was injured in the incident, and Castro said events unfolded so quickly that it was over before the school could be placed on lockdown.

Chris Klint

Chris Klint is a former ADN reporter who covered breaking news.

Megan Edge

Megan Edge is a former reporter for Alaska Dispatch and Alaska Dispatch News.

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