Recent News

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) — A 51-year-old Alaska woman charged with killing her husband who was missing for weeks before police found his body buried under snow on their property in Fairbanks has been sentenced to 23 years in prison.

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports Monica Dee Forbes was sentenced Friday for the 2015 death of 51-year-old Michael Pope. Forbes pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in October as part of a plea deal that required her sentence be no more than 30 years.

Forbes was accused of shooting Pope while he slept and having Sean Cameron Jenkins help her bury the body.

Jenkins was sentenced to nearly three years in prison for his role in the killing.

Forbes’ attorney says the couple’s relationship problems and his client’s drug abuse led her to kill Pope.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska lawmakers have approved $3.5 million in renovations to be spent on renovations for their new office building in Anchorage.

KTUU-TV reports the Legislative Council approved the funding proposal on Thursday.

The committee chairman, Democratic Representative Sam Kito III, says the money will be used to update the facility and bring the building’s features up to code.

The renovations will include heating upgrades, ventilation, electrical and plumbing projects.

Kito says construction will begin soon.

BETHEL, Alaska (AP) — The mayor of Bethel has failed at getting city council members to agree with his plan to lower the southwest Alaska city’s sales tax.

KYUK-AM reports Mayor Rick Robb had proposed lowering the sales tax from 6 percent to 5.75 percent in response to the council’s 2014 decision to increase water and sewage rates.

Robb says water and sewage rates have since risen by between 30 and 50 percent per Bethel household. He says he wanted to lower sales taxes for residents to offset those costs.

But the city council turned down the proposal in a 3-2 vote last week.

Council member Leif Albertson says it would not be right to change the city’s revenue before officials finalize next year’s budget.

KASILOF, Alaska (AP) — Alaska officials say highway improvement plans will result in better fish passage and overall safety.

The Peninsula Clarion reports the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities showed the latest draft of their plans for Sterling Highway on Wednesday. DOT plans to widen the existing shoulders from 4 feet wide to 8 feet wide on the highway stretch from Soldotna and Clam Gulch.

There were 266 accidents in the area between 2006 and 2010, 93 of which officials say could have been avoided with wider shoulders.

Other highway improvements include improved signage, a safety edge and culvert replacements. The new culverts will impact a Slikok Creek tributary, Coal Creek and an unnamed creek near Clam Gulch and Crooked Creek.

Officials plan to start construction next summer.

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — A record breaking amount of cruise passengers are expected to land in Juneau this summer.

The Juneau Empire reports Cruise Lines International Association Alaska President John Binkley announced Thursday that over 1 million summer cruise passengers are traveling to Juneau. The association predicts the travelers in the city from May 1 to Sept. 30 will spend around $183 million.

Binkley says that the cruise ship tourism industry is growing worldwide. CLIA’s cruise lines have seen an estimated 7 percent annual increase. More cruise ships are expected to come through Alaska and average passenger space is expected to increase by 15 percent from 2015 to 2018.

The first cruise ship for the 2017 season is scheduled to arrive Monday.

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — State health officials say an Alaska resident who recently traveled to Central America has tested positive for the mosquito-borne Zika virus.

But the state’s top medical officer, Jay Butler, is urging Alaskans to stay calm.

In a release, Butler says people cannot spread the virus through casual contact. He also says it is transmitted by mosquito species native to warmer climates that do not live in Alaska.

The state health department says prior cases of Zika were reported in Alaska in 2007 and 2016.

According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, many people infected with the virus will have mild symptoms or no symptoms at all. However, pregnant women can pass the virus to their fetus, and infection during pregnancy can cause birth defects.