Police in Anchorage say they’ve taken a man into custody after an early morning shooting in a residential area near downtown left one person dead.
According to the department, Tommy Rumph surrendered peacefully to police about 2 hours after the incident was first reported.
Rumph posted a distraught video on his Facebook page around the time of the shooting that appears to show him walking through the dark, alluding to violence and being “done for life” after someone disturbed his home.
“I feel like I let everyone down,” he said.
The shooting happened at the corner of 15th Ave. and E St.
Two schools nearby, Chugach Optional and Central Middle School were immediately closed.
School district spokeswoman Heidi Embley said the decision to close both schools came after close and rapid consultation with the police department as soon as information started coming in.
“We continued to stay in contact with the police throughout the morning until they had the suspect apprehended,” Embley said.
A handful of students and staff were already at the two schools when police put up a perimeter around the intersection of 15th Ave. and E St., which bumps up against school property.
All students were diverted to a nearby high school for pickup, Embley said.
“So there are no buses that go to Chugach Optional, but for Central Middle School we sent all the buses out on their normal bus routes to pick up students who may not have received information about school being closed,” Embley said. “And in total there were about 20 students who were transported over to West High.”
Embly sadi those two schools will remain closed for the rest of the day to not interfere with the crime scene, but schools will reopen Wednesday.
This is the 26th homicide in Anchorage this year, and happened just a few blocks from the site of a recent double homicide in Valley of the Moon Park.
