Associated Press

Alaska State Troopers say a 23-year-old Kenai Peninsula man made fake 911 calls to divert officers as they pursued and tried to arrest him.

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) — Alaska Gov. Bill Walker says he didn’t think North Korea would be able to strike the state with a nuclear warhead until 2020. But spiraling rumors about the country’s missile capabilities and its leader Kim Jung Un’s recent comments — coupled with President Donald Trump’s statements — have led to him saying the state needs to expand its military presence.

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports that Walker said earlier this week to Politico he was concerned about North Korea’s threats to the U.S. and its claims that missiles can hit Alaska. But he says “no one’s hiding under the desk.”

U.S. Sen. For Alaska Lisa Murkowski says the state has been diligent and has a Long Range Discrimination Radar under construction, which will give missile defenders a better look at what is happening over the Pacific Ocean.

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) — A North Pole couple charged with starving and beating a 6-month-old puppy reached a plea agreement with prosecutors.

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports 22-year-old Denise John-Carroll pleaded guilty Thursday to one felony count of knowingly inflicting prolonged suffering to an animal.

John-Carroll was ordered to pay $1,300 to a veterinary hospital that treated the dog. She’s banned from owning an animal.

Twenty-two-year-old Leonard Kriska pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of the same charge.

An Alaska State Trooper found the injured puppy Nov. 7 during a call to their home. The dog was extremely underweight and had puncture wounds.

The dog was found tucked into a ball with his face hidden in a gap between a wall and a kitchen cabinet.

The dog has been adopted.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The Alaska Energy Authority will continue with its plans for a $46.4 million expansion at its Bradley Lake hydroelectric plant near Homer following the approval from its board of directors.

The Alaska Journal of Commerce reports the board unanimously voted in favor of the expansion at their Aug. 10 meeting in Anchorage. With the board’s approval, the Alaska Energy Authority can look at developing and financing options for its Battle Creek diversion project.

The energy office has said the project would add roughly 37,300 megawatt hours per year to Bradley Lake’s current power production, equivalent to about 10 percent of its average annual output.

Executive Director Michael Lamb says the project has also received approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and is “shovel ready.”

KODIAK, Alaska (AP) — An Alaska marine highway ferry is ready to hit the water again after wasted steel found in a routine overhaul took it out of commission in March.

The Kodiak Daily Mirror reports the Tustumena will leave the Ketchikan shipyard on or around Friday. The ferry is expected to make its first stop in Kodiak on Wednesday.

It is one of two Alaska Marine Highway System ferries serving Kodiak.

Marine Highway System public information officer Aurah Landau says the Tustumena’s repairs to steel in the car deck and engine room should last until its replacement is completed in about four years.

Officials are planning to schedule the Kennicott ferry in the spring to make sure island communities are taken care of, regardless of the Tustumena’s status.

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Two people in Juneau who handled a drug package after it was spotted in the mailing process and then tagged by federal officials have been arrested.

The Juneau Empire reports 44-year-old Christian John Peters and 34-year-old Tiffany Jo Spaulding were arraigned on Thursday in U.S. District Court after a multi-agency warrant search of their house.

U.S. Postal Service Inspector Aaron Behnen says he came across a suspicious package from California on Aug. 6. He says it was sent to “Rosetta Stone” at the suspects’ address. It contained a large canister of coffee filled with 50 pills identified as oxycodone and 221 grams of suspected methamphetamine.

Federal officials placed an electronic alerting and tracking device inside the package and acted when it indicated that the package was opened.