On February 16, 2019, 42-year-old white male Brian Francis Wetmore was shot inside an apartment on Anchorage's west side, near Earthquake Park off the 3000-block of Wendy's Way. Officers were called just before 1 p.m., found the 42-year-old male wounded, and rushed him to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police immediately described the event as an isolated incident within a residence rather than a random attack in the neighborhood.
In the days that followed, Anchorage police publicly identified the victim as the 42-year-old male and said they had made contact with everyone involved, signaling that investigators believed the circle of people tied to the shooting was limited and known to them. However, they released few additional details about what preceded the gunfire or what was said inside the apartment, emphasizing that the circumstances were still being sorted out.
Contemporaneous wire and local reports repeated those points: the 42-year-old male was found with a gunshot wound, taken to the hospital, and died; the scene was processed by the department's crime-scene team; the case appeared contained; and those present had been contacted by detectives. No narrative emerged in the public record clarifying motive or a fuller sequence of events.
Publicly available accounts do not show police announcing an arrest, and no suspect or suspects were named in those reports. The official and media updates located simply note that the investigation into the 42-year-old male's death remained open at the time, with no charging decisions disclosed to the public.
