KMXT 100.1 FM Public Radio in Kodiak, Alaska
Jay Barrett/KMXT
Yesterday afternoon the Kodiak Police Department released the name of the fisherman shot and killed aboard the fishing vessel Katherine in Saint Herman Harbor early Sunday Morning. He is 25-year-old Welton Daniel Albers of Houston, Texas. An earlier Kodiak Police report initially gave his age as 28.
The KPD press release details a timeline that starts with a frantic 911 call from a witness at about 12:40 a.m. In the call, another 26-year-old is reported pleading for assistance after seeing his friend shot several times aboard the FV Katherine located on L-Float in St. Herman Harbor.
The KPD say another 911 call came from a man identifying himself as Matt Bowe, age 28, claiming he had shot Albers in self-defense.
According to the KPD timeline, another young man met the officers on the float, saying Bowe was still aboard the FV Katherine. Bowe was given instructions by the 911 dispatcher on surrendering to the officers and he exited the vessel without incident.
When officers boarded the vessel they found a 21-year-old woman, who was also onboard during the incident. When the officers located Albers he was unresponsive and appeared to have received several gunshot wounds to his arm and torso. He was pronounced dead at Providence Kodiak Island Medical Center.
Officers found a loaded assault rifle in the ship’s galley near the victim and an empty 12-gauge shotgun on the back deck.
Bowe and the three witnesses were brought to the Kodiak police station and interviewed. Based on statements and what evidence they had, Bowe was arrested on a charge of murder in the first degree and was arraigned Monday on $500,000 bail.
