A few weeks ago we recalled the Lane Hotel fire of 1966, noting that it was the single biggest mass homicide in Alaska history and wondered what had become of the man sentenced for the crime, Charles Thessen. Queries to police, fire and corrections officials had turned up dead ends. Helpful readers pointed to death records for someone with that name, but those leads couldn't confirm whether it was the Charles Thessen in question.
[Related: 50 years later, questions remain about Anchorage hotel fire that killed 14]
Fortunately, Bob Miller had already made his own inquiry. Miller was a reporter for the Anchorage Times. The Lane Hotel fire was the first story he covered upon arriving in Alaska on the same night the fire took place. Miller made his query with the Department of Corrections in March and succeeded in getting a response from DOC criminal justice technician Mary Anne Howerter, who responded:
"Mr. Thessen was stabbed to death at Leavenworth Penitentiary on 6/27/74 while serving a 20 year sentence for Manslaughter and Arson in the second degree."
Miller now lives in Longmont, Colorado, and is working on his autobiographical memoir.